Reviews research on the antecedents and the consequences of divorce. Research on historical and sociological causes of divorce, theoretical models, and changes in health status and the role redefinitions experienced by the divorced are discussed. Concludes by relating issues to sampling and measurement. (Author/JAC)

Describes running away from home as a family affair. Suggests the "status offender" legal jurisdiction over runaways should be changed and new alternatives for dealing with runaways and their families developed. Proposes these alternatives should be informed with the perspectives of a family therapeutic approach sensitive to intergenerational…

Presents highlights from the Third International Congress on Child Abuse and Neglect. The topic of child sexual abuse dominated the Congress; other topics included malnutrition, research problems, and concerns of Third World countries. Recommendations of the Congress are summarized.

Discusses a model for clinical preventive intervention with multi-risk-factor families and their infants, with emphasis on the developmental risks involved for both. Emphasis is placed on the context of the total intervention effort, namely, on intervention with the infant, parents, and support system. (Author/DB)

Studies of emotional development in battered children, as well as more general psychological theory and research on personality development, are reviewed for the implications these findings might have for intervention and treatment. (Author/EB)

Developmental family theory is used to conceptualize comprehensive curriculum content. Three theoretical facets (societal-institutional, group-interactional, and individual-psychological) are used to focus appropriate points in the curriculum to include various aspects of family functioning. Family theory is distinguished from family therapy.…

This article describes a 20-hour, eight-week course for experienced foster parents. Goals include understanding the causes of child abuse, understanding the consequences of child abuse, and understanding the interaction patterns which provoke child abuse. (Author/DB)

One of the major polarizations in marriages of workaholic husbands is their pursuit of the "Great American Dream" while their wives are left to pursue the "Petty Realities of Life." Couples must learn to negotiate realistic and functional objectives for themselves, without avoiding the issues. (JAC)

This analysis of the acculturative process of one immigrant Dominican family shows that United States immigration policy forces the separation of families. Immigration regulations do not recognize the cooperating kin groups as "family," and thus necessitate extra-legal strategies to reunify these extended families. (MC)

The authors present a model designed to facilitate counseling with preadolescent children whose parents are experiencing a divorce. The model, based on a standard loss model, is followed by techniques used in helping the child work through each phase of his feeling regarding the divorce. (Author)

A two-year study of 239 families comprising both substance-abusing and nonsubstance-abusing parents found parental substance abuse greatly increased the likelihood of poorer family functioning and re-reports for maltreatment to the child protection services. The findings support the need for including parental substance abuse in risk assessment…

Argues that cohesion is a measure of supportive interactions and that enmeshment is a measure of psychological control. In a study of children and adolescents, cohesion was associated negatively with both internalizing and externalizing adolescent problem behaviors. Enmeshment was related positively with youth problems, and more strongly with…

This article describes an intervention designed to reduce the guilt of parents, experiencing marital difficulties, who had a child with profound physical and intellectual deficits. Following a formal assessment of their daughter, the emotional climate of the marriage was much improved and they felt more able to cope. (Contains references.) (CR)

Examined how peer acceptance and friendships moderated the link between family adversity and child externalizing behavioral problems. Found that peer acceptance in kindergarten and Grade 1 moderated the relationship between family adversity measures and externalizing behavior problems in Grade 2; friendship served as a moderator for harsh…

Evaluated applicability of family stress model of economic hardship for understanding economic influences on child development among African American families with a 10- or 11-year-old child. Found that economic hardship positively related to economic pressure in families, and to emotional distress of caregivers, which in turn damaged the…