Families with Adolescents: Bridging the Gaps Between Theory, Research, and Practice

The second edition of this book offers an expanded and updated blueprint for more consistently improved practice, emphasizing family process and structure instead of only individual developmental stages. Its chapters deftly summarize the recent knowledge base about families with adolescents and explains how to apply these results across mental health and social services disciplines. The new edition clearly illustrates family concerns and theoretical perspectives through real-world vignettes and cogent use of family assessment measures. Chapters offer a broad understanding of how diversity in all its forms ¿ including race/ethnicity, culture, religion, and sexual orientation ¿ has created a much more nuanced understanding of how families with adolescents are able to function within their environment. Both major challenges to families and communities form the backdrop of the second edition¿s focus on forecasting in which the theoretical, empirical, and intervention literatures necessarily move in service to the health and well-being of families with adolescents. Featured topics include: Central concepts of family development, family systems, ecological, attachment, and social learning theories in relation to families with adolescents. Influence of the family on adolescent problem behavior, mental health concerns, substance use issues, educational attainment, and social competence outcomes. Selected studies on parenting behaviors, conflict resolution, and other major aspects of families with adolescents. Application topics in family-based intervention and prevention programs. Integrating theory, research, and applications to create a ¿triple threat¿ model. Diversity issues surrounding race/ethnicity, culture, religion, and sexual orientation. Families with Adolescents, Second Edition, is an essential resource for researchers, professors, and graduate and advanced undergraduate students as well as professionals and other mental health clinicians, practitioners, and therapists in clinical child and developmental psychology, family studies, human development, sociology, social work, education, and all allied disciplines.