The six chapters of this book on family counseling and therapy focus on healthy family functioning; marriage and family counseling theories; the practice of marriage and family counseling; training marriage and family counselors/therapists; issues and topics in family therapy; and images and projections for the future. The 33 articles distributed…

This second chapter in "The Challenge of Counseling in Middle Schools" presents four articles that deal with family relationships in early adolescence. "Teen-Parent Relationship Enrichment Through Choice Awareness," by Richard Nelson and Marsha Link, describes a process through which counselors may help to enrich relationships between teenagers…

This information analysis paper is based on a computer search of the ERIC database from November 1966 through March 1984, and on pertinent outside resources related to marriage and family counseling. A brief historical perspective of the field of marriage and family counseling is provided, and the differences and overlaps between family,…

This digest provides an overview of basic family counseling concepts for counselors whose specialty is in an area other than marriage and family counseling. The author notes that there are two pivotal areas the counselor and client must address upon deciding to involve a family in the client's counseling sessions: how to get the family to come…

This factsheet considers the psychological task of adolescence, explains the adolescent's separation from his/her parents, and gives child and parent checklists for evaluating family functioning. Patterns of family development are discussed, including midlife parental development and the influence of previous generations. The role of non-family…

Can the contemporary family's problems be solved in ways that seemed effective in the past? The extent to which the family has changed argues in the negative. The American family has been stripped of two of its traditional social functions: serving as a unit for economic production and as a school for the vocational training of children. The first…

First, acknowledges Piaget's, Kohlberg's, and Freud's perspectives on moral development. Then reviews more recent research indicating that moral understanding emerges during the first few years of life through children's developing understanding of the standards and rules of their social world and their growing understanding of others' feelings.…

Intended for public school administrators and regular classroom teachers, the report discusses the nature of autistic children and examines aspects of successful educational programs for them. The historical background is traced down from Itard's wild boy through theories of faulty parental conditioning, to current thought on the causes of autism.…

This digest discusses the problem of overrepresentation of children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds in special education and provides examples of strategies created by researchers and practitioners to reduce overrepresentation. Strategies include: (1) promote family involvement and respect diverse backgrounds by taking time…

Breaking the continuing cycle of low literacy levels transmitted from one generation to another is the philosophy behind family and intergenerational literacy programs. This Practice Brief describes some of the family literacy program models that are proving effective. It also summarizes strategies and resources that can help practitioners. The…

The two sections of this monograph deal with child abuse and spouse abuse as separate issues. The authors discuss the factors that have contributed to these problems, including historical antecedents, attitudes, and practices; and identify the characteristics of abusive caretakers of children, violent spouses/partners, and abused or neglected…

This digest describes brief family consultation, a short-term strategy that enlists the home and school in an attempt to solve childhood behavior problems. Five criteria are given for assessing the functional status of a family: (1) parental resources; (2) chronicity; (3) communication between family members; (4) parental authority; and (5)…

This book of readings presents 33 articles that address topics of importance to counselors who serve middle school students. It was written for counselors already working in middle schools and for individuals who are preparing for careers as middle school counselors. The book will also benefit both elementary school counselors who help children…

Recent changes in the family structure and in the work setting are forcing many families to reexamine and redefine the family-career relationship. Until recently, most research on career and family patterns has focused on traditional sex roles. Although competition between career and family roles has caused pain in many families, recent research…

Twelve author-contributed papers from a 1984 conference examine the future of special education. The following titles and authors are represented: "The Institute for Research on Exceptional Children at the University of Illinois" (S. Kirk and W. Spalding); "The Family with a Child Who Is Handicapped: Research Focus for the 1980's" (J. Gallagher);…