There is an idea, currently fashionable amongst historians, that all history is really 'about' the present 1. This thesis does nothing to undermine this idea. Although most obviously concerned with ideas about the family in the twenty five or so years after 1945, it is also very much concerned with our own contemporary debates about the family. Indeed, it is conceived as a means of making an intervention into those debates. The thesis seeks to explore the complexity of debate, policy, representation and memories of the family in the postwar period. To do this, research is organised around three distinct strands: Consideration of official discourse and public policy (at both a national and local level); analysis of representations of family in popular culture, particularly in British film/ and consideration of remembered experience as evidenced in oral sources. Where appropriate, the London Borough of Greenwich has been used as a local example which acts as a reference point for discussion of national concerns. The research comprises work on new oral sources and on local authority and voluntary agency papers which have not previously been the subject of published work. It also involves new ways of thinking about some well research material in official publications and film. The thesis also engages with questions of method and theory associated with studying the history of ideas. It is particularly concerned with affirming the importance of studies of popular, non-literary culture and oral histories in understanding the past.

This study utilized a phenomenological approach to describe the experience of living in a three-generation household after an adult daughter's divorce for members of each generation--divorcing mothers, grandparents, and grandchildren. Topics addressed included: characterizations of divorcing mother-parent relationships and grandparent-grandchild relationships, redefinition of relationship boundaries, and positives and negatives associated with this living arrangement. Divorcing custodial mothers in three-generation households were recruited from a mandated parent education program for divorcing parents in southeastern Arizona. At least one member from each generation in the household participated. Interviews were conducted with 25 individuals in eight families (eight divorcing mothers, nine grandparents, eight grandchildren). Data analysis followed Giorgi's (1985) technique. Results suggested that the redefinition of relationship roles and boundaries (intimacy issues) and the resolution of power issues led to positive relationships and experiences. In the one family doing poorly, numerous instances illustrated the divorcing mother's lack of power within the household. The divorcing mother-parent relationship boundaries had become more hierarchical since coresiding, and the grandparents had overstepped the boundary between "parent" and "grandparent." The resulting tension caused stress for all generations. In the four families who fell between doing poorly and well, the renegotiation of intimacy boundaries had positive effects in terms of improved relationships since coresiding. Power boundaries were still being renegotiated. Again, divorcing mother-parent relationships had hierarchical boundaries, and grandparents had crossed the line between parenting and grandparenting. However, in these families, this may have been due to the divorcing mothers' negative reactions to their separations. In such situations, having grandparents temporarily take on parenting functions for some period of time may be beneficial. These grandparents did express a desire to return to less hierarchical relationships and become more of a "grandparent" than "parent." In the three families doing well, intimacy boundaries did not require renegotiation because the relationships had always been close and supportive. These families were the only ones to describe the value of extended families and family activities. When power issues did arise, family members handled them quickly. Although there was some grandparental. interference in discipline, these grandparents were viewed as "stereotypical" grandparents.

This study was designed to investigate if adults demonstrate egocentric-tendencies, and if so, what factors influence the degree of egocentrism displayed. The investigation was also devised in order to determine if there is a relation between the degree of egocentric-tendencies displayed and marital satisfaction. To measure egocentrism in adults, the Adult Egocentric-Tendency Scale (AETS) was developed. Both the Kansas Marital Satisfaction Scale and the Marriage Rating Scale were utilized to assess marital satisfaction and functioning. One-hundred-thirty-six (N = 136) first time married individuals from the general population acted as participants. They were administered all three instruments. Findings indicate that egocentric-tendencies are measurable in adults. Furthermore, specific adults (men, those who are highly educated and those with a lower number of children living in the household) tend to display greater degrees of egocentrism. This investigation also uncovered a tendency for marital satisfaction to decrease as egocentrism increases and vice versa. Other factors contributing to marital satisfaction were also explored.

In central Mexico's semi-arid highlands, it is common practice for ejidatarios (members of a communal farm, or ejido) to migrate to the United States and other parts of Mexico in order to generate enough household income. Economic and demographic traits within the household affect the decision of an ejidatario to migrate. This thesis examines the effects of those traits on migration decisions. Migration data and household characteristics were collected from 169 ejidatario families (1415 individual family members) from four ejidos in the state of San Luis Potosi, Mexico. In addition, representatives of various governmental and non-governmental organizations who work with the ejidos were interviewed.

Numerous studies have shown that women with better social support have fewer problems adjusting to breast cancer. However, these studies have a tendency to focus only on emotional support and to assess social support at only one point in time. Additionally, the effect of type of treatment on the use of social support has been overlooked. The present study assessed social support as a multidimensional construct. Changes in social support over time and its relationship to life quality at each point in time were examined, as well as any differences due to treatment type. Tangible assistance, satisfaction with support, and negative interaction decreased over time. Tangible assistance and need for support were found to be greater for women receiving chemotherapy, and their life quality decreased. Tangible assistance, advice, and negative interaction were negatively related to life quality, while satisfaction with support was positively related.

Thirty caregivers were interviewed to determine the reasons for the nursing home placement of a relative. A three part questionnaire was used to measure the variables of change in the caregivers' health, social support, social isolation, financial stress, and care receivers' severity of illness. Caregivers consistently identified a decline in physical and emotional health, increased social isolation, declining informal support, and limited formal support. Nearly 50% of the care receivers' demonstrated inappropriate behaviors. With the identification of the reasons for the nursing home placement, caregivers frequently referred to their declining physical, emotional, and social health. Nearly 50% of the subjects described the nursing home as the only choice, and slightly less than 50% identified feelings of guilt. Further education for both professionals and caregivers is essential to help meet the needs of elders and their families.

This study examined whether young adults with a background of parental divorce differed in their attitudes toward marriage and divorce from young adults from maritally intact families. The study utilized data obtained from a survey questionnaire which provided demographic information as well as data on attitudes toward marriage and divorce. The sample population consisted of 152 University of Arizona undergraduate students ages 18-25. Data were analyzed using the Analysis of Variance Method with the results indicating that family structure (maritally disrupted versus intact) was insignificant as a predictor of young adults' attitudes toward marriage and divorce.

My thesis is that femininity is constructed as abstinent, in particular, as abstinent from public, productive labour and from the active expression of desire/pleasure. Further, that the enforcement of women's abstinence through psychiatric, psychological and sociological discourses on femininity ensures the means of patriarchal expression. Women's inabstinence, therefore, poses a threat to patriarchal expression, and insofar as patriarchy is realised through patriarchal expression, to the stability of patriarchal society. Women's drunken inabstinence, however, provides only a temporary, individualised and often self-destructive omen of the threat. My fieldwork focuses on the processes and experiences through which women come to be administered as `alcoholic'/`problem drinkers'. My meetings and discussions with alcohol and drug agency workers and with women administratively defined as `alcoholic'/`problem drinkers' explicated the processes of the social control of all women in terms of the containment and privatisation of their active collective pursuit of pleasure. Drunken women's struggle against the strictures of femininity expresses the beginnings of a threat to patriarchy; however, insofar as the characteristics of femininity itself are `drunken' in their demands for dependency, patriarchal accessibility and a dislocation from public/productive activity, drunkenness as a critique of patriarchy is self-defeating. The challenge to patriarchy comes only in women's sober, collective refusal to abstain from passion.

The PhD submission centres primarily on the book Testing the Limits of Foster Care, which reports on a piece of applied social work research, and the paper Critical Times: a critical realist approach to understanding services for looked after children which examines key theoretical issues relevant to the study. Two other book chapters ‘Changing Perceptions of Children and Childhood’ and ‘Risk and Opportunity in Leaving Care’ are included as supplementary examples of the applicant’s work. In common with Testing the Limits of Foster Care, these seek to understand aspects of child welfare practice in light of wider changes in society and social policy and so are consistent with a critical realist perspective. The study reported in the book Testing the Limits of Foster Care was an evaluation of a foster care project set up to provide an alternative to secure accommodation (Community Alternative Placement Scheme). The research was concerned with how the scheme developed, the nature of the service and its capacity to help young people have good experiences and outcomes. Its purpose was to assess the potential and limitations of this form of care provision. The book outlines the development of the service, and the needs, experiences and outcomes for the first twenty young people placed within the scheme. These are compared with similar young people placed in secure accommodation during the same period. In most respects outcomes were similar for both samples. However outcomes were not viewed as directly resulting from one particular placement, but rather influenced by a host of considerations relating to the young person’s own circumstances and nature of services offered. Foster care and secure accommodation offered young people a very different kind of experience, whilst access to other services such as education and support to independent living were equally important in determining how they fared.

One purpose of this study was to measure and compare adolescent perceptions of intrafamilial stress for 1698 natural-parent, 283 stepfather, and 77 stepmother families. The Index of Family Relations scale was used to measure the level of intrafamilial stress in family member relationships. Results of the one-way analysis of variance show that while adolescents in stepfather families report significantly more intrafamilial stress than adolescents in natural-parent families, adolescents in stepmother families report the highest degree of stress. / These results indicate that one-third of the adolescents in stepfather families and approximately one-half of the adolescents in stepmother families report clinically significant family member relationship problems. On the other hand, two-thirds of the adolescents in stepfather families and approximately one-half of the adolescents in stepmother families perceived no clinically significant problems in their intrafamilial relationships. / A second purpose was to examine the relationship between adolescent perceptions of intrafamilial stress in stepfamilies (n = 360) and: (A) quality of the marital relationship (QMR); (B) quality of the mother-child relationship (QMCR); (C) quality of the father-child relationship (QFCR); (D) length of time the stepfamily has lived together; (E) presence or absence of a common child of the remarried couple; (F) type of termination of the previous marriage; (G) stepchild's religion; (H) stepchild's age; (I) stepchild's sex; (J) stepparent's age; and (K) stepparent's sex. / The results of the regression analysis indicate that the QMR, the QMCR, and the QFCR (i.e., variables which were indicators of relationship dynamics) were excellent predictors of adolescent perceptions of intrafamilial stress in stepfamilies. The remaining eight demographic variables were non-significant. These results indicate that if researchers want information on family member relationship problems, it seems imperative to focus on variables which are related to relationship processes rather than single-factor demographic characteristics. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 42-11, Section: B, page: 4557. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1981.