Couples counseling is about both saving and optimally ending relationships. Some of the factors affecting the counselor's role in couples therapy are addressed in this paper. It opens with a listing of the objectives of counseling, such as the need to remain neutral. Some of the societal influences on divorce rate are discussed, along with…

Three studies demonstrate that the Inventory of Family Feelings, a measure of family affective structure, has high reliability and construct and concurrent validity. It is appropriate for affective comparisons by age, sex, and ordinal position of children and for measuring change after family or marital therapy, or after predictable stress…

Alcoholic women must receive treatment that considers psychological differences between men and women. The basic difference identified was the kinds of roles taken on by women compared to men's roles. Counselors must integrate women's individual experiences with experimental research to effectively help alcoholic women. (Author/JAC)

Whether the union is jeopardized by disappointment, fear of not achieving satisfaction in life, or other problems, the couple in crisis may turn to divorce as the lesser evil. The mediation process is of potential value to those couples who may want to avoid protracted, painful lawsuits. (Author)

Used national longitudinal data to examine parent-child relationships before and after divorce. Parental reports of relationship problems with children were significantly elevated as early as 12 years prior to divorce. Findings suggest that the quality of the parents' marriage has both direct and indirect long-term consequences for parent-child…

Reviews research on the effect of marital violence on children. Discusses some of the adjustment problems children face when exposed to parental fighting, the prevalence of marital violence, the factors that may protect children from the effects of violence, and the implications for professionals who work in the area of family violence. (JPB)

For mysterious reasons only a small proportion of couples with relationship problems seek counseling. This qualitative study included 36 women and 16 men in structured small group discussions. Questions concerned attitudes to relationship counseling. Both groups expressed denial of the problems in the relationship, the seriousness of these…

This study examines the relation between family instability and child maladjustment over a 6-year period in 369 children from four communities. Measures were collected annually from kindergarten through fifth grade. In associative growth curve models, family instability trajectories predicted children's externalizing and internalizing behavior…

Family sources of stress and conflict are important variables in the well-being of children, adolescents, and young adults. In this study, current models of stress are contrasted with earlier versions, definitions are reviewed, and ambiguities in conceptualization are brought out. Current research on affective information processing is thought to…

One of the most dramatic changes in the American culture in recent years is the emergence of a family unit experiencing stages of disruption and reorganization as a common pattern. The stereotypical middle-class, suburban family continues to exist, but other variations of families exist also, family units for which past guidelines and assumptions…

Marital infidelity has two primary dimensions--on overt social-cultural facade and a covert, intense, emotional component. A therapy strategy, based on this formulation and on the presumption that both spouses were equally responsible for the marital fracture, is presented. (Author)

The author suggests three major factors which tend to influence stress on parents and potential marital problems associated with rearing a handicapped child: (1) Support received from family or significant others, (2) Periodic respite care, and (3) Counseling service sought early in the traumatic experience. Cited are studies showing parental…

Recent research indicates that basic indicators of quality of life have some consistent associations with mental health needs. Factors such as socioeconomic status, proportion of a population in poverty, unemployment and underemployment rates, family instability and family life cycle have persistent associations with social and economic stress and…

The effects of business transfers on families were studied through family impact analysis. A small sample (10 couples) of dual-career and dual-worker couples was utilized for the project. The sample was unusual in that both partners were employed by the same company. Four areas were examined for possible impacts of a transfer on the family: family…

Problems related to family violence are complex and multi-faceted and involve large numbers of people in this country. A number of types of violence in families are identified initially; however, the manual focuses on the concerns of battered women, or interspousal abuse. Information focuses on: (1) the nature, causes and effects of family…