Written for researchers, practitioners, and students in advanced courses, this book furthers our understanding of the complexity of contemporary families. Seven types of families are the focus of this book, based on the research available and the challenges they present for mental health professionals. The family forms discussed are
• Adoption
• Foster care
• Interracial families
• Family members with special needs (with a focus on autism)
• Families with LGBTQ members
• Grandparent-headed Families
• Family members with chronic medical conditions
The volume establishes an innovative format that fits the new age of evidence-based practice. Each chapter is written by a collaborative team of authors consisting of researchers and practitioners. The former address the prevalence and characteristics of the family form and then present the research findings most relevant to clinical practice; the latter use this as the foundation for their portion of the chapter, in which they discuss strategies for good therapeutic intervention, representing a true integration of science and practice. Readers learn about relevant research findings regarding each family described, as well as gain explicit instruction and case material for which to augment therapeutic efforts with these populations.