Family Interaction: A Multigenerational Developmental Perspective

I first knew of Anderson and Sabatelli's works through the professional journals in family studies and family therapy. I used the instrument "Differentiation in the Family Systems Scale (DIFS)" developed by them in my master's thesis research. Their approach is mostly influenced by Murray Bowen's family system theory. In this text, they again use the Bowenian theory as a grounding framework, combined with structural family theories (i.e. Salvador Minuchin, David Olson's circumplex model..etc.). The authors did an excellent job of integrating existing family science literature. For example, in chapter II--family strategies, they propose six universal strategies families employ to meet developmental tasks during the family life cycle: developing identity, regulating boundary, maintaining resources, managing emotions, and coping with stress. Then, these strategies were used to illustrate family interaction patterns in different family developmental stages throughout the chapters in Part III. The last part disscusses four alternative family developmental pathways. I find the chapter on death, loss, and bereavement is especially insightful. Unfortunately, gay and lesbian relationships were not included here (nor in the "family diversity" chapter). That makes the book somewhat incomplete. However, I find the text is very suitable for introductory family courses, especially for those who prefer psychological approach rather than traditional sociological approach. This book is also recommended for family therapy students as the foundamental knowledge base. Though I left the graduate school few years ago and am a counselor now, I still find some concepts in the book very refreshing and useful for clinical conceptualization. I give this book a very high praise!