Contemporary Families Therapeutic Support For New Challenges

Contemporary Families at the Nexus of Research and Practice integrates current research with clinical theory to establish the most up-to-date, evidence-supported treatment options for unique contemporary families. Each chapter begins with a case study and genogram. A research section that explains family experiences outlined in the case study follows. Finally, a treatment section presents clinical theory and provides an evidence-supported practice. Together, each chapter demonstrates how theory gets translated into practice. Family forms discussed include families of divorce, stepfamilies, families of addiction, impoverished families, families of incarceration, families of cyberbullying, and families of murder victims. Whether you’re a professional or a student, this book will provide both relevant research findings and explicit instruction and case material to augment your practice.

This volume tackles key issues in the changing nature of family life from a global perspective, and is essential reading for those studying and working with families. Covers changes in couple relationships and the challenges these pose; parenting practices and their implications for child development; key contemporary global issues, such as migration, poverty, and the internet, and their impact on the family; and the role of the state in supporting family relationships Includes a stellar cast of international contributors such as Paul Amato and John Coleman, and contributions from leading experts based in North Africa, Japan, Australia and New Zealand Discusses topics such as cohabitation, divorce, single-parent households, same-sex partnerships, fertility, and domestic violence Links research and practice and provides policy recommendations at the end of each chapter

Written for researchers, practitioners, and students in advanced courses, this book furthers our understanding of the complexity of contemporary families. Seven types of families are the focus of this book, based on the research available and the challenges they present for mental health professionals. The family forms discussed are • Adoption • Foster care • Interracial families • Family members with special needs (with a focus on autism) • Families with LGBTQ members • Grandparent-headed Families • Family members with chronic medical conditions The volume establishes an innovative format that fits the new age of evidence-based practice. Each chapter is written by a collaborative team of authors consisting of researchers and practitioners. The former address the prevalence and characteristics of the family form and then present the research findings most relevant to clinical practice; the latter use this as the foundation for their portion of the chapter, in which they discuss strategies for good therapeutic intervention, representing a true integration of science and practice. Readers learn about relevant research findings regarding each family described, as well as gain explicit instruction and case material for which to augment therapeutic efforts with these populations.

As the social world of American families feverishly changes, single-parent families, dual-career couples, and blended families have quickly become the norm rather than the exception. In Family Relations, a distinguished group of leading family researchers including Joan Huber, David Olson, Hamilton McCubbin, and Marilyn Coleman examines the social changes that have gripped society and explains their impact on family relationships and functioning. Initial chapters address principal theories of change; the remainder of the volume addresses the predominant challenges facing contemporary families such as work/family interface, violence, family dysfunction, family crisis, divorce, and the transition to marriage and parenthood. The contributors make suggestions for change in family policy, family therapy, and family life education, and conclude with an overview of the current state of families and future directions. This comprehensive and interesting volume is for students, family researchers, sociologists, psychologists, counselors, family life educators, and policy analysts. "True to its aim it informs about the latest understandings and tools of intervention to help overcome the formidable challenges to the family....there is some worthy scholarship to be found in this volume....chapter 3 on gender and role change is a lively and readable summary." --British Journal of Social Work "[This volume] has much to offer. For example, the volume contains demographic information often needed by practitioners and policymakers at a moment′s notice. Literature reviews not only summarize research on a particular topic but also are organized around a theoretical framework. Well-known authors have contributed scholarly, insightful commentaries on current family issues and challenges for the future. In short, this book provides information that practitioners and policymakers could use to do the following: establish the need and rationale for programming and applied research, justify the expenditure of funds for children and families, ground their work in theory and research, conduct in-service education, and consider program evaluation strategies. . . . This book is well-written and provides a valuable resource for the intended readership. I look forward to the second volume." --Journal of Marriage and the Family

Resilience is a topic that is currently receiving increased attention. In general, resilience refers to the capacity of those who, even under the most stressful circumstances, are able to cope, to rebound, and to go on and thrive. Resilient families are able to regain their balance following crises that arise as a function of either nature or nurture, and to continue to encourage and support their members as they deal with the necessary requirements for accommodation, adaptation and, ultimately, healthy survival. Handbook of Family Resilience provides a broad body of knowledge regarding the traits and patterns found to characterize resilient individuals and well-functioning families, including those with diverse structures, various ethnic backgrounds and a variety of non-traditional forms. This Handbook brings together a variety of perspectives aimed at understanding and helping to facilitate resilience in families relative to a full range of challenges.

This book is a challenge to the silos in our human services that an ‘atomised’ focus gives rise to. They are evident in the chasm that can exist between child and adult mental health care, between competing therapeutic approaches and, most importantly for this volume, in the segmentation of support for adults who are partners as well as parents. The contributors, all with substantial experience of providing front-line services, identify the problem their intervention is designed to address, provide a conceptual justification for the approach they have used and supply evidence for its effectiveness. Vivid illustrations bring the work to life and provide examples of best practice whose relevance can readily be transported to different settings. Unusual in bringing together approaches that encompass internal and external realities in responding to the challenges of physical constraint, emotional distress and an often-volatile social environment, the contributions are assembled to highlight a common thread that can inform services at different stages of the life course. Each chapter is accompanied by a commentary from specialists in their field who elucidate and critique the key points made by the authors and help the experience of reading the book to be one of dialogue. Engaging Couples: New Directions in Therapeutic in Work with Families explores new ways of approaching some of the key issues of contemporary family life, including depression, living with long-term conditions, inter-parental conflict and domestic abuse to name but a few, refracting them through a lens that sees our relationships as fundamental to the fabric of our lives – the most important social capital of all. It represents essential reading for clinicians and family practitioners of all persuasions, and those that train and support them in their work.

"Linking research with clinical practice, this text shows therapists how to do evidence-based practice when treating contemporary families. Today's families are diverse and complex, and their problems do not always improve when treatment focuses on addressing a diagnosis. To achieve successful, lasting change, therapists must help families change their patterns of interaction. This book examines several common interactional challenges that contemporary families face, such as co-parenting, divorce, intimate partner violence, blending families, and loss and bereavement. For each challenge, contributors examine research regarding the concern as well as research on multiple diverse family types, and then provide clinical examples showing how to develop interventions for these family types. With its combined focus on inclusion, social justice, and evidence-based practice, this book will help clinicians work with today's diverse families in effective, culturally responsive ways"--