Psychology and Law
preprints
doi:10.17759/psylaw.2026000004
ISSN: 2222-5196 (online)
Expert aspects of studying parental attitudes and parenting styles in legal disputes between parents regarding child upbringing
Abstract
Context and relevance. The steady increase in the number of complex forensic psychological and psychiatric examinations (CFPE) in parental disputes over child custody places high demands on the methodological unity and categorical consistency of expert opinions. Despite the commonality of the terminology used, the content of many key psychological concepts is vague and allows for various interpretations, which is unacceptable for legal psychology and highlights the need for a review of their content and expert significance. Goal. Identification of the components of the psychological concepts "parental attitudes", "parental position", and "educational style" that are significant for expert analysis. Theoretical approaches. The principles of forensic clinical and psychological expertise are used. Results. The article considers scientific approaches to the study of parental attitudes, positions, and styles, and substantiates the ineffectiveness of using various models of parental position for expert practice due to the danger of replacing individual specifics with template constructs with evaluative nominations. The article analyzes and summarizes the components of the above-mentioned psychological categories that are significant for the expert qualification of the features of parental position and parenting approaches of adult subjects in this specific type of KSPPE. Conclusion. The study made it possible to identify and organize psychological indicators that reveal the content of integral psychological formations, which can be used to analyze and evaluate the parental position, attitudes, and parenting styles in an informative, individualized, and evidence-based manner.
General Information
Keywords: complex forensic psychological and psychiatric examination, parental disputes over child upbringing, child-parent relationships, parental attitudes, parental position, and parenting styles
Journal rubric: Forensic and Clinical Psychology in Legal Context
Article type: research article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.17759/psylaw.2026000004
Funding. The study was conducted within the framework of the State Task No. 124020800063-2 "Integrative models of forensic psychiatric and complex psychological and psychiatric examinations in civil proceedings conducted in the interests of the most vulnerable groups of the population"(2024—2026).
Received 31.07.2026
Accepted
Published
For citation: Safuanov, F.S., Savina, O.F. (2026). Expert aspects of studying parental attitudes and parenting styles in legal disputes between parents regarding child upbringing. Psychology and Law. Early Access. https://doi.org/10.17759/psylaw.2026000004
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