Marriages and families in the 21st century : a bioecological approach / by Tasha R. Howe.

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Marriages and Families in the 21st Century provides an in-depth exploration of a traditional field of studyusing a new and engaging approach. The text covers all theimportant issues?including parenting, divorce, agingfamilies, balancing work and family, family violence, and genderissues?using a bioecological framework that takes intoaccount our status as both biological and social beings. Using thislens, which emphasizes the individual's interactions with a seriesof larger systemic influences?from family, peers, neighborsand teachers, to schools, media, institutions and culture?thebook creates a cohesive overview of modern family life and helpsstudents visualize the complex influences affecting all people infamilies. It also examines the state of modern families using astrengths-based approach, which allows students to evaluate thehealth and functioning of a family considering the biological andcultural milieu in which it exists, rather than on its observablestructure or appearance alone.

Individual chapters cover historical and cultural trends andalso explore the biological, personal, and social forces that shapeindividuals and families. Each chapter investigates the widediversity of human relationships and integrates discussions ofethnicity, culture, sexual orientation, and gender seamlessly intothe main narrative. In addition, the book explores recent researchin neuroscience, medicine, and biopsychology to examine how familyrelationships are shaped by and also influence individuals'biological functioning.

An accessible writing style coupled with numerousstudent-friendly pedagogical features help readers come to amulti-layered understanding of "what makes families tick," whilealso challenging them to reevaluate their own assumptions andexperiences.

Key features:

Uses a bioecological model that takes into account our statusas both biological and social beings Employs a strengths-based approach that focuses on familyprocesses rather than structure in evaluating families' optimalhealth and happiness Incorporates discussion of neuroscience, medicine, andbiopsychological research throughout Explores a wide diversity of family relationships, integratingissues of ethnicity, culture, sexual orientation, and gender Focus on my Family boxes profile real families who wroteessays in their own words about their diverse experiences How Would You Measure That? sections emphasize students'critical thinking and analysis of research design andconclusions Helps students analyze their own families' strengths andattempt to build on those through psychometrically soundself-assessments and Building Your Strengths exercises Engaging and accessible writing style incorporatescontemporary, real-world examples with important theory andresearch Instructor?s manual, test bank, PowerPoint lectureslides, and useful web links, as well as Student flash cards andself-test questions, available upon publication atwww.wiley.com/go/howe

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Tasha R. Howe is a Fulbright Scholar and Professor of Psychology at Humboldt State University, where she specializes in family violence, developmental psychopathology, and violence prevention. She is also a nationally certified trainer for the American Psychological Association's violence prevention parenting curriculum Parents Raising Safe Kids. She has published numerous scholarly articles in the fields of child maltreatment, program evaluation, and the scholarship of teaching. In 2009, she was recognized for effectively infusing diversity into her teaching by the Society for the Teaching of Psychology, Division 2 of the American Psychological Association.