Should a parent class ever reference child classes?

Question

Good morning,

I inherited some legacy code at work and it is using a rather unusual design pattern. The only reference I could find on the forums to a similar patter

Answer 1

Maybe they have it setup that way to use Log4J in one environment, and Logback in another? I know sometimes developers prefer a tool when doing local development, but when it comes time to deploy have to use whatever the company endorses/approves.