Several years ago, an anonymous donor gave a generous gift to the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at George Washington University School of Medicine. The donor suggested that the gift be used to support a conference on the current dilem mas of the American family and to publish its proceedings. The current chairman of the department, Jerry Wiener, formulated the initial plans for the conference with Leon Yochelson, who had been chairman at the time the gift was made. Dr. Yochelson is now Chairman of the Board of the Psychiatric Institute of the District of Columbia. These initial discussions led to a significant and sus tained collaboration between the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at George Washington and the Psychiatric In stitute in planning the conference and the present volume. A committee was established to plan the conference. It con sisted of Peter Steinglass, Associate Professor of Psychiatry, and George Cohn, Professor of Child Health and Development, both of George Washington, and Margaret Garrett, a member of the psychiatric staff at the Psychiatric Institute. The committee was jointly chaired by the editors of this volume. The committee re ceived indispensable assistance from members of the administra tive staff of the Psychiatric Institute: Al Bruce, Carol Klein, and Miriam Mathura. Margaret Schnellinger of the Center for Family Research, George Washington University, was also very helpful in all phases of planning the conference.

Where did your surname come from? Do you know how many people in the United States share it? What does it tell you about your lineage?From the editor of the highly acclaimed Dictionary of Surnames comes the most extensive compilation of surnames in America. The result of 10 years of research and 30 consulting editors, this massive undertaking documents 70,000 surnames of Americans across the country. A reference source like no other, it surveys each surname giving its meaning, nationality, alternate spellings, common forenames associated with it, and the frequency of each surname and forename.The Dictionary of American Family Names is a fascinating journey throughout the multicultural United States, offering a detailed look at the meaning and frequency of surnames throughout the country. For students studying family genealogy, others interested in finding out more about their own lineage, or lexicographers, the Dictionary is an ideal place to begin research.

Challenging widely held beliefs, this provocative book offers nothing less than a blueprint for enhancing the social and economic status of African American families. Despite the implementation of liberal social policies in the 1960s and '70s, successive U.S. administrations continue to dash the hopes and expectations of African Americans, who remain subject to racism and discrimination. Arguing that social policies—and their absence—have affected the stability of the African American family, Jewell refutes the myth of significant progress for African American families emanating from the civil rights era, exposing the myriad reasons why greater advancement toward equality has not occurred in major societal institutions. Attention is focused on the extent to which African American families have been adversely affected by a process of assimilation that was socio-psychological rather than economic. This new edition builds upon the first edition, and is revised and expanded to reflect new and persistent institutional policies and practices of race, gender and class inequality facing African American families. The revised edition explores such issues as racial profiling, capital punishment, police brutality, predatory lending, No Child Left Behind, welfare reform, affirmative action and racial disparities in healthcare, academic achievement and home ownership. Jewell proposes a variety of strategies and policies that are needed to ensure greater social and economic equality and justice for African American families.

Family Policy and the American Safety Net shows how families adapt to economic and demographic change. Government programs provide a safety net against the new risks of modern life. Family policy includes any public program that helps families perform their four universal obligations of caregiving, income provision, shelter, and transmission of citizenship. In America, this means that child care, health care, Social Security, unemployment insurance, housing, the quality of neighborhood schools, and anti-discrimination and immigration measures are all key elements of a de facto family policy. Yet many students and citizens are unaware of the history and importance of these programs. This book argues that family policy is as important as economic and defense policy to the future of the nation, a message that is relevant to students in the social sciences, social policy, and social work as well as to the public at large. .

This second edition of a trend-setting volume provides an updated examination of the interaction between families and the most pervasive mass medium: television. Charting the dynamic developments of the American family and television over the past decade, this volume provides a comprehensive representation of programmatic research into family and television and examines extensively the uses families make of television, how extensions of television affect usage, families' evolving attitudes toward television, the ways families have been and are portrayed on television, the effects television has on families, and the ways in which families can mediate its impact on their lives. The volume is an invaluable resource for scholars and students in the areas of media and society, children and media, and family studies.

Family Matters in the British and American Novel examines the literature that challenges and alters widely held assumptions about the form of the family, familial authority patterns, and the function of courtship, marriage, and family life from the late-eighteenth century to the present day.

American Architects and the Single-Family Home explains how a small group of architects started the Architects’ Small House Service Bureau in 1919 and changed the course of twentieth-century residential design for the better. Concepts and principles they developed related to public spaces, private spaces, and service spaces for living; details about the books they published to promote good design; as well as new essays from contemporary practitioners will inspire your own designs. More than 200 black and white images.

The U.S. military has been continuously engaged in foreign conflicts for over two decades. The strains that these deployments, the associated increases in operational tempo, and the general challenges of military life affect not only service members but also the people who depend on them and who support them as they support the nation â€" their families. Family members provide support to service members while they serve or when they have difficulties; family problems can interfere with the ability of service members to deploy or remain in theater; and family members are central influences on whether members continue to serve. In addition, rising family diversity and complexity will likely increase the difficulty of creating military policies, programs and practices that adequately support families in the performance of military duties. Strengthening the Military Family Readiness System for a Changing American Society examines the challenges and opportunities facing military families and what is known about effective strategies for supporting and protecting military children and families, as well as lessons to be learned from these experiences. This report offers recommendations regarding what is needed to strengthen the support system for military families.