Presents theory and typology of marital quality. Outlines three-corners model--systems theory of the self-in-marriage. Describes seven types of marital relationships in terms of systems theory, including four variants of high-quality marriage. Highlights model through critical assessment of Lewis and Spanier's (1979) essay on marital quality and…

Discusses need for systems-based approach to quality assurance in mental health services, which can provide useful information to administrators and practitioners as they work to maintain or improve quality of care provided to patients. Introduces generic model for monitoring and evaluating quality of care and discusses potential barriers to its…

Describes a counseling model that integrates career and leisure through need-value theory and compensatory leisure theory. (RC)

Discusses the theoretical proposition that adolescent-young adults and the retired-aging bear a symmetrical relationship in terms of psycho-social propensities and "social location." Respondents from two age groups reflected personal views of goals, values, and satisfaction and stresses of life as they experienced it. (Author)

Presents community development as a strategy for achieving goals of prevention in small communities in Appalachia. Emphasizes the organization of social structures and collective efforts in problem and enhancing levels of physical and mental health in these vulnerable communities. (Author)

Choice Awareness is a cognitive-affective-behavioral system that goes beyond both communication training and behavioral bartering approaches to marriage enrichment. Couples explore thoughts, feelings, and actions in their relationships and develop personal power in making choices and in taking responsibility for their own lives. (Author)

Outlines a complex research agenda for understanding the contributions of informal social support to the quality of later life. Suggests a conceptual model for investigating informal support networks and well-being for the elderly and offers suggestions for operationalizing the model. (NRB)

Efforts to measure the quality of life in cities have emphasized comparisons among different places. This is useful for citizens and businesses but not for communities. The advice of local residents must be sought to develop community-oriented measures which define the quality of life in terms of the local context. (VM)

Provides a conceptual framework for understanding the holistic health field so counselors may consider its implications in addressing a new service area. Holistic health has unique emphases on positive wellness, environmental concerns, self-responsibility, and such practices as meditation, fitness, nourishment, vitality, and spirituality. (Author)

The future of the elderly in the People's Republic of China will be influenced by political agenda, degree to which traditional values toward the aged are preserved, degree to which eldercare support is built on the existing social structure, eldercare program institutionalization in the state budget, and the elderly's continued integration into…

Describes the application of a management concept called Quality Circles to educational settings. Suggests the use of Student Life Improvement Circles involving student volunteers who consider problems dealing with student life. Presents two examples of the techniques, one focusing on process and the other on task. (JAC)

Conclusions were that: (1) meanings of mental health constructs cluster differently depending on the analysis; (2) happiness may be considered the most apposite representative of the mental health constructs employed by gerontologists; and (3) contemporary models of happiness favor neither the expansionist nor contractionist positions as a means…

Family conservation is a new approach for strengthening nuclear families on a system level. The family communiversity is an agency developed to effect that approach. A discussion of family conservation on the systems level concerns the need for coping with those forces detrimental to families. The objective of family conservation is to maximize…

Presents a conceptual model depicting the effects of family-oriented benefits, policies, and services in the corporate sector, on employees' work and family lives. Discusses the model in the context of the historical development of, and recent expansions in, corporate supports for employees and their families, and the need for a work-family model…