4 minute read

Family Rituals

Conclusion



The steady stream of research and clinical interest in family rituals has been stimulated, in part, because family rituals make sense to families. Family members can identify what rituals they practice and distinguish how important they are to family life. Rituals can be directly observed in their practice. The study of family rituals may allow researchers to break away from the tradition of identifying "good" and "bad" traits and focus on how families find success and meaning in their collective lives.




Bibliography

Bennett, L. A.; Wolin, S. J.; Reiss, D.; and Teitelbaum, M. A. (1987). "Couples at Risk for Transmission of Alcoholism: Protective Influences." Family Process 2:111–129.

Bennett, L. A.; Wolin, S. J.; and McAvity, K. J. (1988). "Family Identity, Ritual, and Myth: A Cultural Perspective on Life Cycle Transition." In Family Transitions: Continuity and Change over the Life Cycle, ed. C. J. Falicov, NY: Guilford.

Blum-Kulka, S. (1997). Dinner Talk: Cultural Patterns of Socialization in Family Discourse. Mahwah, NJ: LEA.


Bossard, J., and Boll, E. (1950). Ritual in Family Living. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.

Brody, G., and Flor, D. L. (1997). "Maternal Psychological Functioning, Family Processes, and Child Adjustment in Rural, Single-Parent, African American Families." Developmental Psychology 33:1000–1011.


Bush, E. G., and Pargament, K. I. (1997). "Family Coping with Chronic Pain." Families, Systems, and Health 15:147–160.

Chin, S. Y. (1991). "Korean Birthday Rituals." Journal of Cross-Cultural Gerontology 6:145–152.

Fiese, B. H. (1992). "Dimensions of Family Rituals across Two Generations: Relation to Adolescent Identity." Family Process 31:151–162.

Fiese, B. H. (2000). "Family Matters: A Systems View of Family Effects on Children's Cognitive Health." In Environmental Effects on Cognitive Abilities, ed. R. J. Sternberg and E. L. Grigorenko. Mahwah, NJ: LEA.

Fiese, B. H.; Hooker, K. A.; Kotary, L.; and Schwagler, J. (1993). "Family Rituals in the Early Stages of Parenthood." Journal of Marriage and the Family 57:633–642.

Fiese, B. H., and Kline, C. A. (1993). "Development of the Family Ritual Questionnaire: Initial Reliability and Validation Studies." Journal of Family Psychology 6:1–10.

Fiese, B. H. and Marjinsky, K. A. T. (1999). "Dinnertime Stories: Connecting Relationship Beliefs and Child Behavior." In The Stories that Families Tell: Narrative Coherence, Narrative Interaction, and Relationship Beliefs. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, ed. B. H. Fiese, A. J. Sameroff, H. D. Grotevant, F. S. Wamboldt, S. Dickstein, and D. Fravel. Malden, MA: Blackwell.

Fiese, B. H.; Tomcho, T.; Douglas, M.; Josephs, K.; Poltrock, S.; and Baker, T. A. (2002). "Review of Fifty Years of Research on Naturally Occurring Family Routines and Rituals: Cause for Celebration?" Journal of Family Psychology (December).

Henry, C. S., and Lovelace, S. G. (1995). "Family Resources and Adolescent Family Life Satisfaction in Remarried Family Households." Journal of Family Issues 16:765–786.

Imber-Black, E.; Roberts, J.; and Whiting, R. (1988). Rituals in Families and Family Therapy. New York: Norton.

Ingersoll-Dayton, B. S. C. (1999). "Respect for the Elderly in Asia: Stability and Change." International Journal of Aging and Human Development 48:113–130.

Jensen, E. W.; James, S. A.; Boyce, W. T.; and Hartnett, S. A. (1983). "The Family Routines Inventory: Development and Validation." Social Science and Medicine 17:201–211.

Lucyshyn, J. M.; Albin, R. W.; and Nixon, C. D. (1997). "Embedding Comprehensive Behavioral Support in Family Ecology: An Experimental, Single-Case Analysis." Journal Consulting and Clinical Psychology 65:241–251.

Martini, M. (1996). "'What's New?' at the Dinner Table: Family Dynamics during Mealtimes in Two Cultural Groups in Hawaii." Early Development and Parenting 5:23–34.

Martini, M. (2002). "How Mothers in Four American Cultural Groups Shape Infant Learning During Mealtimes." Zero to Three 22:14–20.

Markson, S., and Fiese, B. H. (2000). "Family Rituals as a Protective Factor for Children with Asthma." Journal of Pediatric Psychology 25:471–479.

Roberts, J. (1988). "Setting the Frame: Definition, Functions, and Typology of Rituals." In Rituals in Families and Family Therapy, ed. E. Imber-Black, J. Roberts, and R. Whiting. New York: Norton.

Van der Hart, O. (1983). Rituals in Psychotherapy: Transitions and Continuity. New York: Irvington.

Whiteside, M. F. (1988). "Creation of Family Identity through Ritual Performance in Early Remarriage." In Rituals in Families and Family Therapy, ed. E. Imber-Black, J. Roberts, and R. Whiting. New York: Norton.

Wolin S. J., and Bennett, L. A. (1984). "Family Rituals." Family Process 23:401–420.

Yoos, H. L.; Kitzman, H.; and Cole, R. (1999). "Family Routines and the Feeding Process." In Failure to Thrive and Pediatric Undernutrition: A Transdisciplinary Approach, ed. D. B. Kessler and P. Dawson. Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co.

BARBARA H. FIESE
KIMBERLY HOWELL

Additional topics

Marriage and Family EncyclopediaFamily & Marriage TraditionsFamily Rituals - Definitions, Assessment Of Family Rituals, Research On Family Rituals, Therapeutic Use Of Family Rituals