Description
Meeting your goals and your students' goals.
Students walking into the Marriages and Families classroom want to learn more about themselves, their lives, and how forces -such as government policies - will affect their lives. They are striving to learn how to make better decisions.
Instructors goals are to teach a strong theoretical foundation and critical thinking while keeping their students engaged.
Seccombe's Marriages and Families achieves both these goals.
Major themes of this text include:
1. Individual Relationships in a Social Context
2. Social Science Research
3. Application
4. Critical Thinking
Through personal videos, photos, and interviews with real families, readers learn how their choices and those of others, are influenced by social and political factors.
Table of Contents
IN THIS SECTION:
1. BRIEF TABLE OF CONTENTS
2. COMPREHENSIVE TABLE OF CONTENTS
BRIEF TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Chapter 1: Why Study Families and Other Close Relationships?
Chapter 2: Social Status: Sex, Gender, Race, Ethnicity, and Social Class
Chapter 3: Building Relationships
Chapter 4: Love and Loving Relationships
Chapter 5: Sexual Identity, Behavior, and Relationships
Chapter 6: Communication, Conflict, and Power in Our Relationships
Chapter 7: Marriage
Chapter 8: Thinking about Parenthood
Chapter 9: Raising Children
Chapter 10: Families and the Work They Do
Chapter 11: Family Stress and Crisis: Violence among Intimates
Chapter 12: The Process of Divorce
Chapter 13: Family Life, Partnering, and Remarriage after Divorce
Chapter 14: Families in Middle and Later Life
Chapter 15: Looking Ahead: Helping Families Flourish
COMPREHENSIVE TABLE OF CONTENTS:
PART I: Families and Intimate Relationships: Key Concepts
Chapter 1: Why Study Families and Other Close Relationships?
How Do We Define Family?
The Functions of Families
Theme 1: Linking the Micro- and Macro-Level Perspectives on Families
Theme 2: Families are Always Changing
Theme 3: The Importance of Social Science Theory and Research
Bringing It Full Circle
Chapter 2: Social Status: Sex, Gender, Race, Ethnicity, and Social Class
The Link between Private Experiences and Social Structure
Sex, Gender, and Patriarchy
Race and Ethnicity
Social Class
Poverty
The Intersections of Sex, Gender, Race, Ethnicity, and Class
Bringing It Full Circle
PART II: The Foundations of Relationships
Chapter 3: Building Relationships
Singlehood
Friendships
Dating, Courtship, and Mate Selection
Heterosexual Cohabitation
Gay and Lesbian Intimate Relationships
Bringing It Full Circle
Chapter 4: Love and Loving Relationships
What Is Love?
Love as Attachment
Images of Love in History
Contemporary Ideas about Love
Theoretical Perspectives on Love
How We Experience Love
The Downside to Relationships and Love
Bringing It Full Circle
Chapter 5: Sexual Identity, Behavior, and Relationships
Overview of Historical and Cultural Influences on Sexuality
Our Sexual Selves: Biology and Culture Intertwined
Sexual Scripts
Gender and Sexual Scripts: The Double Standard
Studying Human Sexuality
Sexual Behaviors
Sexual Expression throughout Our Lives
Sexual Satisfaction in Committed Relationships
Sex as a Social Problem: Sexually Transmitted Infections
Bringing It Full Circle
Chapter 6: Communication, Conflict, and Power in Our Relationships
The Importance of Communication
The Cultural Context of Communication: Embracing Difference
Types of Communication
Sex Differences in Communication
Communicating to Keep Your Relationships Strong: Self-Disclosure
Conflict, Communication, and Problem Solving
Power, Control, and Decision Making
Bringing It Full Circle
Chapter 7: Marriage
Marriage: Here, There, and Everywhere
Marriage in U.S. History
What Is Happening to Marriage Today?
The Marriage Premium: Happiness, Health, and Economic Security
Does Marriage Benefit Everyone Equally?
Marital Satisfaction and Success
The Marriage Movement and Covenant Marriage
Peer Marriage
Bringing It Full Circle
PART III: Parents and their Children
Chapter 8: Thinking about Parenthood
Population and Fertility Trends Worldwide
Fertility in the United States
The Costs and Rewards of Raising Children
Remaining Childfree
The Interconnection of Micro and Macro: Childbirth
Other Paths to Parenthood: Adoption
The Transition to Parenthood
Bringing It Full Circle
Chapter 9: Raising Children
Parenting: It’s Not the Same Everywhere
Socialization: Learning to be Human
Parenting Styles
Mothering
Fathering
How Do Children Influence their Parents?
Parenting and Family Contexts
Bringing It Full Circle
Chapter 10: Families and the Work They Do
The Changing Dynamics of the Workplace
Life in a Recession
Family Work At Home
Juggling Work and Family Life
Diversity in Families: Why We Chose to Live in Hungary
Who’s Minding the Kids?
Bringing it Full Circle
PART IV: Family Strengths, Challenges, and Reorganization
Chapter 11: Family Stress and Crisis: Violence among Intimates
The Nature of Stress and Crisis
Intimate Partner Violence
Child Abuse and Neglect
Elder Abuse
Explanations for Violence among Intimates
The Public’s Response
Bringing It Full Circle
Chapter 12: The Process of Divorce
Divorce in the United States
Why Do People Divorce?
Experiencing Divorce
Divorce and Children: Child Support
What Are the Effects of Divorce on Children?
Should Divorce Be More Difficult to Obtain?
The “Good Divorce”
Bringing It Full Circle
Chapter 13: Family Life, Partnering, and Remarriage after Divorce
Being Single Again
Repartnering after Divorce
Remarriage
Stepfamilies
Surviving and Thriving in Stepfamilies
Bringing It Full Circle
Chapter 14: Families in Middle and Later Life
The Demographic Revolution
Aging in Historical Perspective
Family Transitions
The Aging Couple
Widowhood
Grandparents and Their Grandchildren
Retirement
Health
Bringing It Full Circle
Chapter 15: Looking Ahead: Helping Families Flourish
What Do Families Need to Flourish?
Family Policy
Building Resilience: General Policies and Programs to Support Families
Specific Policies and Programs for Children
Specific Policies and Programs for the Elderly
What Have We Learned?
Bringing It Full Circle
Purchase Info 
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Exploring Marriages and Families, CourseSmart eTextbook
Format: Electronic Book
$54.99 | ISBN-13: 978-0-205-84248-3
