Reclaiming the Emotional Aspects of the Therapist-Family System

The shift from first to second order cybernetics has made the concept of the therapist-family system part of the everyday discourse of family therapy. In spite of this shift, there is little focus in family therapy literature on the emotional aspects of the therapist-family system. Relevant process concepts available to us at present, such as induction or accommodation, are poorly defined and inadequate. Three reasons for the neglect of the emotional aspects of family therapy are explored. They are, firstly, more recent theoretical and technical directions, secondly, the politics of gender and thirdly, the enduring difficulty of working with and writing about our own and families' powerful emotions. Finally, following a case example, some psychoanalytic concepts are described and discussed. It is possible that concepts such as counter-transference and projective identification may enrich family therapists' understanding of what is happening within the therapist-family system.     

Options to liberalize Social Security disabled widow(er)s benefits

Each month, 200,000 widows and 6,000 widowers receive Social Security disabled widow(er)s benefits, each benefit averaging about $550. Among the most economically at-risk Social Security beneficiaries, their benefits are permanently reduced. This paper reviews the legislative history of the disabled widow(er)s benefit, identifying key decisions that gave shape to this benefit. Social Security program data and six years of Current Population Survey data (March Annual Demographic Files, 1995-2000) are used to profile the economic status of current and potential disabled widows. The analysis, including comparison with other widows, provides strong evidence of economic need among disabled widows with, for example, 44% of disabled widow beneficiaries, ages 50-59, having below-poverty incomes compared with 15% of like-aged non-disabled widows. We conclude that serious consideration should be given to extending eligibility to all widow(er)s disabled before the normal retirement age; to providing a benefit equal to 100% of the deceased spouse's private insurance amount (PIA); to eliminating the unnecessarily restrictive seven-year rule; and to protecting beneficiaries from losing their eligibility to Medicaid. Even in the context of today's heated Social Security debate, we suggest that a rare opportunity may exist to garner bipartisan support for meaningful, low-cost improvements, in a benefit that primarily targets women.     

Resiliency factors in the relation between childhood sexual abuse and adulthood sexual assault in college-age women

Research has suggested that childhood sexual abuse (CSA) may be a risk factor for adulthood sexual assault. This study examined associations between CSA experiences, cognitive resiliency variables, and revictimization. Participants were 73 college-age females who completed self-report questionnaires assessing CSA, adult assault, self-efficacy, locus of control (LOC), and coping styles. Sexual assault was categorized as forced or coerced assault based on the tactics used by the perpetrator. Results indicated that CSA alone was the strongest independent predictor of forced adult assault; however, LOC and positive coping were associated with resiliency to coercive sexual assault. The current findings have clinical implications in that LOC and coping styles are characteristics that can be enhanced through therapy.     

Management of premature menopause

There has been some confusion among women and health professionals since the publication of the Women's Health Initiative and Million Women studies about the management of premature ovarian failure (POF). Both studies were undertaken in women aged 50 and over, and cannot be extrapolated to their younger counterparts, who would normally be producing their endogenous estrogen, since they have functioning ovaries. Estrogen-based replacement therapy is the main stay of treatment for women with POF and is recommended at least until the average age of natural menopause (52 years in the UK). This view is endorsed by regulatory bodies such as the Committee on Safety of Medicines (now the Commission on Human Medicines) in the UK. No evidence shows that estrogen replacement increases the risk of breast cancer to a level greater than that found in normally menstruating women, and women with POF do not need to start mammographic screening early unless other risk factors are present, such as family history.     

Housing assessment criteria of rural households

This paper is an assessment of factors which influence a household to make decisions in relation to their residential location involves a complex set of variables. The location is an important aspect of quality of life, therefore, a better understanding of the components of residential decision making is essential. This paper explores factors contributing to the ideal housing situation and compares two measurements: congruence and quality score.     

Disneyland and Walt Disney World: Traditional Values in Futuristic Form

The Disney parks—Disneyland in California and Walt Disney World in Florida—presented a radical refinement and departure from the traditions of the amusement park: the theme park. Designed for the values of long distance travel, suburban lifestyle, family life, the major vacation excursion, and the new visual culture of telecommunications, these places have grown to attain the status of national popular culture capitals. Because of their importance to American life, these institutions have suffered more than their share of attacks as key symbols ofpopular culture. Like all such targets of elitist ire (led by such accusations as “plastic” and “mindless”), the Disney parks must be experienced carefully and studied closely to see beyond these simplistic slings and arrows. Emerging from this study was a contention directly opposed to the common wisdom of the theme parks' futuristic and artificial nature: they may in fact serve as cultural preserves for the most nostalgic images and dreams of a nation. They are a very special kind of museum, of course—of past and future not as they were or will be but as popular taste has shaped and nurtured them in the collective imagination. The Disney “archive” of Americana is thus highly valuable as a display of popular thought on every featured theme.     

Voluntary Leaders in Voluntary Welfare Agencies

The voluntary sector is an increasingly important component of our system of welfare provision. This paper focuses on voluntary leaders of welfare agencies in the voluntary sector; the chairpersons of governing bodies. It draws on a study carried out in an outer metropolitan borough with a socially mixed population. The characteristics of chairpersons and the background to their involvement are described. It appears that most are drawn in to their agencies and in to the role of chairperson more by chance than through positive commitment to a cause, but that, once in post, they rise rapidly to the challenge. Leadership of the local voluntary sector is found to be part of a wider commitment to community benefit and to collective provision of welfare. Some implications of the findings for the development of voluntary sector welfare agencies and for social policy are discussed.