Judith Wallerstein cautions us that a serious problem exists when a child and a parent of either sex joins forces in
an alignment against the other parent's lifestyle, values or identity.
When children get caught in the middle of parental conflict, they are at risk for many psychosocial problems, including
alignment with one
parent against the
other (e.g., Amato, 1994; Johnston, 1994; Wallerstein, Lewis, & Blakeslee, 2001; Wallerstein & Blakeslee, 1996).