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The FRTC recently received a call for assistance in locating some information concerning the effect on infants of separation from the primary care giver. This information was sought to disprove an alleged study concerning infant brain research that supposedly showed the "negative effects of separation far outweigh the benefits of being parented by the non-custodial father".

The county official who requested the information and who was involved with preparing and researching the courts visitation guidelines got this response from Dr. Richard Warshak, noted author of "The Custody Revolution".

If presented with supposed "research" in an attempt to reduce or eliminate your overnight time with your infant son or daughter, we suggest examining the material detailed on this page, as it references some of the most significant research supporting the beneficial effects of frequent contact with both parents.

To Whom it May Concern:

I am an administrative policy/program evaluator for a County in Michigan. I am presently reviewing a program proposal from our County Health Department that is designed to reduce parenting time for non-custodial fathers of infants aged 0-3. The premise for the program is based on infant brain research that supposedly shows that the negative effects of separation from the primary care giver far outweigh the benefits of being parented by the non-custodial father. The research supposedly comes from "Child-Centered Residential Schedules" (Spokane Bar Association-December 1996) and "Promoting Positive Relationships Between Parents and Young Children When There are Two Homes (Children's Charter of the Courts of Michigan, Inc. 1996).

Mark Knudsen

In response, Richard Warshak, PhD wrote:

   Re: 'infant brain research that supposedly shows that the negative effects of separation from the primary care giver far outweigh the benefits of being parented by the non-custodial father.'

"This is total nonsense. There is no such research. I refer you to two recent articles which review the relevant scientific literature that bears on the question of residential schedules for young children:

Joan B. Kelly and Michael E. Lamb, "Using Child Developmental Research to Make Appropriate Custody and Access Decisions for Young Children," in Family and Conciliation Courts Review, Volume 38, Number 3, July 2000, pages 297-311. [reprint available through www.ncmc-mediate.org] Richard A. Warshak, "Blanket Restrictions: Overnight Contact Between Parents and Young Children," in Family and Conciliation Courts Review, Volume 38, Number 4, October 2000, pages 422-445. [reprint available through www.warshak.com]"

"This journal is published by the prestigious Asssociation of Family and Conciliation Courts. Submissions to the journal must pass the review of experts before being accepted for publication (known as peer review). Each of these articles was considered important enough to be the lead article in the journal issue in which it appeared. Joan Kelly is one the world's leading authorities on divorce. Michael Lamb is head of the Section on Social and Emotional Development at the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. He is probably the world's leading authority on early child development, certainly the leading authority in the U.S. Richard Warshak is one of the leading authorities on child custody and divorce."

After reviewing the relevant research, both articles reach identical conclusions. Kelly and Lamb conclude: "Regardless of who has been the primary caretaker, therefore, children benefit from the extensive contact with both parents that fosters meaningful father-child and mother-child relationships."

Dr. Warshak concludes: "The practice of discouraging overnight contact cannot be supported by appeals to theory, research, clinical experience, common experience, or common sense."


Richard A. Warshak, Ph.D.
Clinical Professor Department of Psychiatry
University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas