Question: Why do people practice parental alienation?
Answer: A parent who works to alienate their child from his or her other parent can do so for one of many reasons. These reasons may include:
- Insecurity in the parental relationship
- Revenge because of a failed relationship or abuse by the other parent; alienating the child from the target parent inflicts great pain on the target parent
- A validation of feelings of hatred between former spouses and an effort to have the child share these feelings with them
- Gaining an advantage in a custody or child support case
- A desire to limit contact between the child and the target parent because the alienating parent believes it is a risk for the child to have contact
