Sourcebook of Family Theory And Research

Now available in paperback for classroom use!

"This comprehensive text provides a rich source of perspectives on theorising about the family for scholars, researchers, and students. Another of the book′s strengths is the emphasis on multimethod approaches in family research. The book covers an impressive range of topics and issues - marital happiness, adjustment of children in divorce marriages, gay marriage, sibling ties, ethnic families of colour, stepfamilies, aggression culture, work and family, religion, and social policy, to name a few. In summary, this superb volume is highly recommended and amply reflects the many contemporary perspectives on the family." ―Philip Siebler, Monash University, Victoria

Sponsored by the National Council on Family Relations, the Sourcebook of Family Theory and Research is the reference work on theory and methods for family scholars and students around the world. This volume provides a diverse, eclectic, and paradoxically mature approach to theorizing and demonstrates how the development of theory is crucial to the future of family research.

The Sourcebook reflects an interactive approach that focuses on the process of theory building and designing research, thereby engaging readers in "doing" theory rather than simply reading about it.

An accompanying website  offers additional participation and interaction in the process of doing theory and making science. Editors Vern L. Bengtson, Alan C. Acock, Katherine R. Allen, Peggye Dilworth-Anderson, and David M. Klein have brought together a prominent group of diverse contributors ranging in race and ethnicity, age and seniority, and gender and sexual orientation.

The Sourcebook begins with a section that sets the context for future family research. The subsequent sections explore changing family patterns, changing family interactions within and across generations, and families and larger social forces. A concluding section discusses issues of teaching family theories and research.

Key Features

• Focuses on the process rather than the outcomes of family theory and research methods
• Emphasizes the value of multi-methods approaches in family research by integrating theory development with the development of research methods
• Differs from many other publications on family research by describing the development of new ideas rather than just summarizing existing findings
• The interactive Web site and the special feature boxes within the chapters engage readers with theory and methodology. Boxed features include Case Studies, Spotlights on Theory, Spotlights on Methods, and a Discussion and Extension sections.
• Represents a "Who′s Who" of family researchers with contributions from many of the best researchers in the family realm

The Sourcebook will be an excellent addition to any academic library. It is an authoritative reference for scholars and researchers in Human Development and Family Studies, Sociology, Social Work, and Psychology. In addition, the Sourcebook can also be used in graduate courses on family theory and methodology.

Vern Bengtson is the AARP/University Chair in Gerontology and Professor of Sociology at the University of Southern California. He has published 15 books and over 220 articles in gerontology, the sociology of the life course, family sociology, social psychology, and ethnicity and aging.  He was elected President of the Gerontological Society of America and has been granted a MERIT award from the National Institute on Aging for his 35-year Longitudinal Study of Generations. Bengtson’s honors include (twice) the Reuben Hill Award from the National Council of Family Relations (1980 and 1986); the Distinguished Scholar Award from the American Sociological Association’s section on aging (1995); the Robert W. Kleemeier Award from the Gerontological Society of America (1996); and the Ernest W. Burgess Award from the National Council on Family Relations (1998).  In addition he has received several awards for teaching, which has provided his greatest satisfaction throughout his career.      


Alan Acock (Ph.D., Washington State University) is Professor and former Chair of Human Development and Family Sciences at Oregon State University. He has also taught at Louisiana State University, Virginia Tech, and the University of Southern California. Alan has published 4 books, 20 book chapters, and 120 articles. He is a Fellow of the National Council on Family Relations, a winner of the Reuben Hill Award, several awards for teaching, and his book on Family Diversity and Well-Being received the 1995 Choice Award for Outstanding Academic Book. Alan has held elected offices in the American Sociological Association and the National Council on Family Relations. His substantive research has been on the effects of family structure on the well-being of family members and on intergenerational relations. He is currently investigating the effects of fathers returning to families after incarceration. He has served on editorial boards of several substantive journals including the Journal of Marriage and Family. His methodological research has focused on structural equation modeling and missing values. He is currently writing a book on Stata. He serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Structural Equation Modeling.

 

Peggye Dilworth-Anderson (Ph.D., Northwestern University) is Director, Center for Aging and Diversity in the Institute on Aging at Chapel Hill and Professor of Health Policy and Administration in the School of Public Health. She earned her Ph.D. from Northwestern University in 1975 and also received training in family therapy from the Family Institute of Chicago, Institute of Psychiatry, Northwestern University. In 1989 she received additional training in family issues and Alzheimer′s disease from the Harvard Geriatric Education Center. Her research and publications have included both theoretically and empirically-based topics on ethnic minority families, with emphasis on older African-Americans. In addition to being cited in professional journals, her work has been cited in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, the Christian Science Monitor, and numerous local and regional newspapers. She has received funding to support her research from the National Institute on Aging, the Administration on Aging, the March of Dimes Birth Defect Foundation, the Alzheimer′s Association and GalxoSmithKline.  

 

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.