Family Theories : An Introduction

The Fourth Edition of James M. White, David M. Klein, and Todd F. Martin’s best-selling Family Theories: An Introduction offers a thorough and accessible approach to the most current perspectives in family theory. Rich in detail yet exceptionally concise, the text′s analytical structure draws from such major theoretical frameworks as social exchange and choice, symbolic-interaction, family life course development, systems, conflict, feminism, and ecology to explain variation in families. Thoroughly updated, this new edition helps readers connect theory to everyday life.

James M. White is a Professor in the School of Social Work and Family Studies at the University of British Columbia and resides with his wife and three daughters in Vancouver, Canada. His research interests include family development as well as marital interaction and communication. He is the author of Dynamics of Family Development (published in the U.S. in 1991 and translated into Japanese in 1994), as well as numerous articles that have appeared in the Journal of Family Issues, Journal of Social & Personal Relationships, Journal of Marriage and Family, and elsewhere. His authored and co-authored book chapters include a chapter with R. H. Rodgers on family development in the Sourcebook of Family Theories & Methods (1993). He has served as referee for numerous journals in family relations and public health and is an Associate Editor for the Canadian Journal of Public Health, Journal of Comparative Family Studies, and The International Encyclopedia of Family Relationships. He is a past-president of the Northwest Council on Family Relations, whose membership includes academics, practitioners, and therapists from the states and provinces of the Pacific Northwest.  He is also an Honorary Fellow of the National Council on Family Relations.

 

 

David M. Klein is Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Notre Dame. His current research is on relationship formation, assessment, and dissolution. He co-edited the Sourcebook of Family Theory and Research, and has served as Chair and Archivist of the Theory Construction and Research Methodology Workshop. He also has been Treasurer of the National Council on Family Relations, and Chair of its Research and Theory Section.  He is also an Honorary Fellow of the National Council on Family Relations.

Todd F. Martin is Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology and Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at Trinity Western University. He is co-author of Families Across the Life Course (2012). He holds degrees in Theology, Family Studies, and Sociology. His work has been published in journals such as the Journal of Adolescent Research, International Migration Review and Journal of Family Theory and Review. He has also contributed to edited volumes on the topic of fertility as well as work and family interaction. His current research is on cohabitation, adolescent religious socialization, and union dissolution. Currently he is the Managing Editor of The Journal of Comparative Family Studies He is a member of the National Council on Family Relations and active in the Theory Construction and Research Methodology Workshop.