Effects of Favoritism on Families
John Lakvold
As mental health professionals, we often focus on a client’s trauma or adverse childhood experiences as part of the assessment and treatment of mental health disorders. As a society, we know that physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, divorce, imprisonment, open substance use, domestic violence, and household mental illness are detrimental to a child’s physical and mental well-being. In recent history, researchers have found that socioeconomic status, discrimination, and refugee status can contribute to an individual’s overall physical and mental well-being. Nevertheless, we do not often think about the problems created when a parent favors one child over another. Parental favoritism can have a significant impact on the relationship...
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