This document proposes the adoption of a rules-based theoretical perspective for the study of family interaction. In the first section, Logical and Empirical Requirements, concepts and basic assumptions pertinent to rules theory are considered. The concepts of coordination and determinacy, as used in a rules framework, are explained, and logical…

Similarities between parents and children have been of interest throughout history, but little work has been done in the area of communication similarities. To study the intergenerational continuity of communication style, the first of two studies examined the correlations between certain readily-identifiable aspects of parental communication…

Families are rule-governed systems of interdependent individuals whose interaction follows an intricate pattern of behavior. Communication patterns in a family reflect and emerge from contradictions in rules. A function may be defined as something that a system does and must do if it is not to break down. For instance identity and stability…