ABSTRACT
The focus of this chapter is the characteristics of targeted parents. There is consideration of the factors that might contribute to the development of the parental alienation process, such as a history of passive interactions with the alienating parent, a tendency to avoid self-assertion in general, and the adoption of an inflexible parenting style. Other factors, such as experienced distress, the tendency to withdraw from high conflict, and the rejection of the alienated child in response to the child’s rejection, may contribute to the duration and severity of the alienation. The way in which the campaign of the alienating parent affects the targeted parent–child relationship is considered, with attention being given to the decrease in the time the targeted parent gets to spend with the alienated child and the ways in which the targeted parent–child relationship is sabotaged. Special attention is given to the serious consequences for the targeted parent of the false allegations of abuse that are made by the alienating parent against them. Finally, attention is given in this chapter to the consequences for the targeted parent of the alienation campaign. These include the loss of the targeted parent’s parenting role, the feelings of injustice that must be endured, and the personal costs, including financial costs, for the targeted parent.
