What assumptions do you make in mother-led child abduction reports?

[Slightyamusedandsilly]

When you read media reports of a child abduction case, when the abductor is the mother taking the child away from the father, what is your suspicion?

I'm not referring to a specific case for obvious (legal) reasons.

Some sort of social services involvement. You can’t kidnap your child if you have parental responsibility.
Or trouble with the dad

Without any other info to go on I would assume that the father is abusive and the mother is fleeing to safety. But I’ve heard of a couple of women who have refused to return children who live with the father full time (not media reports). So depends on the situation

I always assume the kidnapper wants control over the situation.

The mother has been poor at parenting and is trying to avoid social services.

I assume DV
and / or parents with conflict over which country the children should reside in and ‘kidnap’ is seen as only way to maintain contact

I refrain from having an opinion until I know all of the facts

If it's a woman, I usually assume DV to be honest. And if there is a financial differential, even more so. Man uses his financial power to try to control even further and the woman runs with the children.

This. How can you possibly make a judgement without the facts?

Generally if hear of a woman abducting her kids...I make the assumption that she's probably a totally normal mum trying to get her kids and herself away from an abusive man.

Dad is violent and controlling and she is foreign and poor

I assume the dad is fighting tooth and nail to get full custody by fabricating stories about the mum and succeeding.

I assume dad's abusive.
And when dad abducts children, I assume dad's abusive.

Men are far more likely to be abusive and violent then women are. That is a fact

I'm not a judge or a jury so why do my assumptions matter?

Because we make our judgements based on patterns. There are marked differences in behaviour patterns of men and women when it comes to threat levels posed and respective levels of care for children.
In the absence of facts and evidence our minds leap to the pattern because it is what we expect to see. Obviously if the case goes against the pattern that would be revealed by evidence and our thinking would adjust.

The whole point of the thread is for people to be honest on an anonymous forum what would spring to mind. Which they have done and I've explained why. Its not the fault of posters here that male behaviour has created these associations, is it? If fewer men were abusive and more were equal carers for children I don't expect the assumptions would be made.

Regardless of gender I assume the kidnapper is doing so to hurt the other parent, either not realising or not caring how it affects the children, that they are controlling and didn't get exactly what they wanted again only caring for themselves rather than the children or they are fleeing some form of abuse. I try not to make assumptions before knowing the facts but personal experience do cause biases I guess.

I assume the parent wants control of the situation. Why they want control is another matter. They might be right, they might be wrong.

Remember when those parents "kidnapped" their son to get Proton beam therapy in Spain before it was available here?