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Dark Personalities and Induced Delusional Disorder: A Crisis in the Family and Domestic Violence Courts

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Abstract

Approximately 10% of family court cases involve chronic allegations of child abuse with children often rejecting a continued relationship with one parent. Judicial and non-clinical determinations of abuse allegations’ legitimacy can be confounded by narcissistic-borderline-dark personality parents who use virtuous victim narratives to manipulate others for self-serving agendas and who decompensate into encapsulated persecutory delusions under stress. Children triangulated by a delusional parent into an enmeshed cross-generational coalition are highly susceptible to developing an induced delusional disorder. If misdiagnosed, a child’s induced delusions can mislead the court into making dangerous decisions. Drawing from attachment, family systems, and personality and delusional disorder knowledge, three diagnostic indicators (DI) and 12 associated clinical signs (ACS) were predicted. In this study, we examined prevalences of the 12 ACS in a data set of 46 high conflict families litigating custody where all 3 DI were met. Further research using clinical assessments and interviews is recommended.
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