RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 The Parental Alienation Debate Belongs in the Courtroom, Not in DSM-5 JF Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online JO J Am Acad Psychiatry Law FD American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law SP 127 OP 131 VO 40 IS 1 A1 Houchin, Timothy M. A1 Ranseen, John A1 Hash, Phillip A. K. A1 Bartnicki, Daniel J. YR 2012 UL http://jaapl.org/content/40/1/127.abstract AB The DSM-5 Task Force is presently considering whether to adopt parental alienation disorder (PAD) as a mental illness. Although controversy has surrounded PAD since its inception in 1985, pro-PAD groups and individuals have breathed new life into the push to establish it as a mental health diagnosis. In this analysis, we argue that it would be a serious mistake to adopt parental alienation disorder as a formal mental illness in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5).