Gary W. Peterson is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Family Studies and Social Work at Miami University, Oxford, Ohio. His areas of research and scholarly expertise are adolescent development within the context of families, parent-child relationships, and family theory. Currently, he is pursuing these areas of inquiry cross-culturally within samples of adolescents from the Peoples’ Republic of China, Russia, India, Kenya, Mexico, Chile, and the U.S. Previous research areas have included public health issues in populations of Mexican-American youth as well as influences on the life plans of low-income, rural youth from Appalachian areas of the U.S. He is a co-editor of the Handbook of Marriage and the Family (2nd Ed.) and Adolescents in Families, Parent-Youth Relations: Cultural And Cross-cultural Perspectives, and Pioneering Paths in the Study of Families: The Lives and Careers of Family Scholars. Dr. Peterson is former editor of the journal Marriage and Family Review and was named a Fellow of the National Council on Family Relations in 2006. Research and scholarly articles have appeared in such publications as Journal of Marriage and the Family, Family Relations, Journal of Adolescent Research, Journal of Research on Adolescence, Youth and Society, Family Process, Sociological Inquiry, and Family Issues. Dr. Peterson is Editor or Co-Editor of books on fatherhood, cross-national parent-child relations, and family theory. He is a chapter contributor to several edited collections on such topics as parental stress, gender in the parent-child relationship, a life course perspective on parent-child relationships, and prevention programs for parent-child/parent-adolescent relationships. Dr. Peterson has been a guest editor for special issues of several research journals and has been a member of the Board of Directors for the National Council on Family Relations. Kevin R. Bush is an Associate Professor of Family Studies at MiamiUniversity in Oxford, Ohio. His research interests focus on child and adolescent development in the contexts of family and culture including academic achievement, self-concept, self-efficacy, as well as internalizing and externalizing issues. He has conducted studies with US (Appalachian, African American, Asian American, European American and Latino) and international (e.g., Chinese, Columbian, Mexican, South Korean, and Russian) samples of children, adolescents and parents. His work has been published in several scholarly journals, including Child Development, Journal of Marriage and Family, Journal of Adolescent Research, Journal of Family Psychology, Sociological Inquiry, Journal of Family Economic Issues, Marriage and Family Review, and Psychology in the Schools. Dr. Bush also has contributed several chapters to edited collections on such topics as adaptation among immigrant families, family influences on childhood development, parenting and adolescents, family relationships and gender roles in Appalachia, as well as gender and the parent-child relationship.

• PREFACE.-Balancing Connectedness and Autonomy in Diverse Families.-II. THEORETICAL AND METHODOLOCAL ISSUES.-The Current Status of Theorizing About Families.-The Demography of Families.-Quantitative Methodology for Family Science.-Qualitative Family Research: Enduring Themes and Contemporary Variations.-Systemic and Ecological Qualities of Families.-Feminism and Families.-Stress Processes in Families and Couples.-Conceptualizing Cultural Influences on Socialization: Comparing Parent-Adolescent Relationships in the U.S. and Mexico.-II. RELATIONSHIPS, PROCESSES, AND ROLES IN FAMILIES.-Dating and Mate Selection.-Marriage Relationships in the 21st Century.-Living Together Unmarried: What Do We Know About Cohabiting Families?--Child Relationships in Diverse Contexts.-Theory and Research Pertaining to Families with Adolescents.-Sibling Relationships.-Father’s Nurturance of Children Over the Life Course.-Adulthood and Aging in Families.-Gender and Family Relationships.-Sexuality in Families: The (Re) Creation of Sexual Culture.-Family Violence.-Marital Dissolution.-Remarriage and Stepfamily Life.-III.  FAMILIES AND OTHER INSTITUTIONS.- Work and Family Through Time and Space:  Revisiting old Themes and Charting New Directions.-Family Economic Well-Being.- The Division of Household Labor.-Religion and Family Research in the Twenty First Century.-IV. DIVERSITY IN FAMILY LIFE.- Family Lives of Lesbian and Gay Adults.-African American Families: Research Progress and Potential in the Age of Obama.-Asian American Families Adjustment to the U.S. Context: The Ecology of Strength and Stress.- Latino Families in the United States.- V. APPLICATION OF FAMILY SOCIAL SCIENCE.-Social Policies and Families through an Ecological Lens.-Families and Communities: A Social Organization Theory of Action andChange.-Family Life Education: Issues and Challenges in Professional Practice.-Family Therapy: An “Emerging Field”.-Teaching about Family Science as a Discipline.-VI. Diverse Families: Islands of Refuge in the Midst of Troubled Waters?

Gary W. Peterson is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Family Studies and Social Work at Miami University, Oxford, Ohio. His areas of research and scholarly expertise are adolescent development within the context of families, parent-child relationships, and family theory. Currently, he is pursuing these areas of inquiry cross-culturally within samples of adolescents from the Peoples’ Republic of China, Russia, India, Kenya, Mexico, Chile, and the U.S. Previous research areas have included public health issues in populations of Mexican-American youth as well as influences on the life plans of low-income, rural youth from Appalachian areas of the U.S. He is a co-editor of the Handbook of Marriage and the Family (2nd Ed.) and Adolescents in Families, Parent-Youth Relations: Cultural And Cross-cultural Perspectives, and Pioneering Paths in the Study of Families: The Lives and Careers of Family Scholars. Dr. Peterson is former editor of the journal Marriage and Family Review and was named a Fellow of the National Council on Family Relations in 2006. Research and scholarly articles have appeared in such publications as Journal of Marriage and the Family, Family Relations, Journal of Adolescent Research, Journal of Research on Adolescence, Youth and Society, Family Process, Sociological Inquiry, and Family Issues. Dr. Peterson is Editor or Co-Editor of books on fatherhood, cross-national parent-child relations, and family theory. He is a chapter contributor to several edited collections on such topics as parental stress, gender in the parent-child relationship, a life course perspective on parent-child relationships, and prevention programs for parent-child/parent-adolescent relationships. Dr. Peterson has been a guest editor for special issues of several research journals and has been a member of the Board of Directors for the National Council on Family Relations. Kevin R. Bush is an Associate Professor of Family Studies at MiamiUniversity in Oxford, Ohio. His research interests focus on child and adolescent development in the contexts of family and culture including academic achievement, self-concept, self-efficacy, as well as internalizing and externalizing issues. He has conducted studies with US (Appalachian, African American, Asian American, European American and Latino) and international (e.g., Chinese, Columbian, Mexican, South Korean, and Russian) samples of children, adolescents and parents. His work has been published in several scholarly journals, including Child Development, Journal of Marriage and Family, Journal of Adolescent Research, Journal of Family Psychology, Sociological Inquiry, Journal of Family Economic Issues, Marriage and Family Review, and Psychology in the Schools. Dr. Bush also has contributed several chapters to edited collections on such topics as adaptation among immigrant families, family influences on childhood development, parenting and adolescents, family relationships and gender roles in Appalachia, as well as gender and the parent-child relationship.

• PREFACE.-Balancing Connectedness and Autonomy in Diverse Families.-II. THEORETICAL AND METHODOLOCAL ISSUES.-The Current Status of Theorizing About Families.-The Demography of Families.-Quantitative Methodology for Family Science.-Qualitative Family Research: Enduring Themes and Contemporary Variations.-Systemic and Ecological Qualities of Families.-Feminism and Families.-Stress Processes in Families and Couples.-Conceptualizing Cultural Influences on Socialization: Comparing Parent-Adolescent Relationships in the U.S. and Mexico.-II. RELATIONSHIPS, PROCESSES, AND ROLES IN FAMILIES.-Dating and Mate Selection.-Marriage Relationships in the 21st Century.-Living Together Unmarried: What Do We Know About Cohabiting Families?--Child Relationships in Diverse Contexts.-Theory and Research Pertaining to Families with Adolescents.-Sibling Relationships.-Father’s Nurturance of Children Over the Life Course.-Adulthood and Aging in Families.-Gender and Family Relationships.-Sexuality in Families: The (Re) Creation of Sexual Culture.-Family Violence.-Marital Dissolution.-Remarriage and Stepfamily Life.-III.  FAMILIES AND OTHER INSTITUTIONS.- Work and Family Through Time and Space:  Revisiting old Themes and Charting New Directions.-Family Economic Well-Being.- The Division of Household Labor.-Religion and Family Research in the Twenty First Century.-IV. DIVERSITY IN FAMILY LIFE.- Family Lives of Lesbian and Gay Adults.-African American Families: Research Progress and Potential in the Age of Obama.-Asian American Families Adjustment to the U.S. Context: The Ecology of Strength and Stress.- Latino Families in the United States.- V. APPLICATION OF FAMILY SOCIAL SCIENCE.-Social Policies and Families through an Ecological Lens.-Families and Communities: A Social Organization Theory of Action andChange.-Family Life Education: Issues and Challenges in Professional Practice.-Family Therapy: An “Emerging Field”.-Teaching about Family Science as a Discipline.-VI. Diverse Families: Islands of Refuge in the Midst of Troubled Waters?