The Best Interests of the Child

In The Best Interests of the Child, published between 1973 and 1986, the authors speak in one voice in concluding that the continuity of care - continuity of a child's relationship with his or her adult caregiver - is a universal essential to the child's well-being.

The authors stress that minimizing intrusions by the law is paramount to safeguarding the child's growth and development. The least detrimental alternative - the authors overarching guideline for assuring the continuity of the psychological parent-child relationship - has been cited in more than a thousand child custody cases since 1973.