Handbook of Marital Therapy: A Positive Approach to Helping Troubled Relationships by R. P. Liberman; E. G. Wheeler; L. de Visser; J. Kuehnel; T. Kuehnel Review by: Eugene Mead Family Relations, Vol. 30, No. 3 (Jul., 1981), p. 484 Published by: National Council on Family Relations Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/584055 . Accessed: 18/06/2014 03:21 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp . JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact
[email protected]. . National Council on Family Relations is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Family Relations. http://www.jstor.org This content downloaded from 195.34.79.174 on Wed, 18 Jun 2014 03:21:13 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions http://www.jstor.org/action/showPublisher?publisherCode=ncfr http://www.jstor.org/stable/584055?origin=JSTOR-pdf http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp illustrations. He presents a very optimistic approach to understanding and helping young people in trouble. Liberman, R. P., Wheeler, E. G., de Visser, L., Kuehnel, J., & Kuehnel, T. Handbook of marital therapy; A positive approach to helping troubled relationships. New York: Plenum Press, 1980, 262 pp. n.p.i. Eugene Mead Brigham Young University Liberman, et al. present here a primer for therapists who wish to begin to do group be- havior marital therapy. Based on the princi- ples of behavior therapy and social learning theory, the authors have set forth the step-by- step procedures necessary to help couples improve their communication and begin work on other problems in their marriage. This text is developed primarily for therapists who are already experienced to some degree. It could be readily picked up by marriage and family counselors, psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, pastoral counselors and others who have a background in counseling and therapy. The major thrust of the Handbook of Marital Therapy is a program to improve couple communication. The authors also include a chapter on solving special problems. While we might regret that other aspects of marital therapy are not covered in this text, we can only rejoice that such an outstanding job of treating marital communication has been ach ieved. Two features make this text outstanding. The first is the fact that the procedures recommended by the authors are based on ex- tended empirical findings. This means that others wishing to use these techniques may apply them to similar populations with considerable confidence that the procedures will have positive outcomes similar to those described by the authors. The second out- standing feature of this text is the excellent manner in which the material is presented. The organization of the textbook itself and each of its chapters is an example of educa- tional craftmanship. Chapter outlines and whole chapters donated to summarizing and outlining the steps of the therapy make this text truly user-oriented. Mace, D. & Mace, V. What's happening to clergy marriages? Nashville: Abingdon, 1980. 144 pp. $4.95 p.b. John H. Strassburger University of Georgia This book is written in keeping with the author's continued commitment to marriage enrichment. Believing this the first book to specifically address clergy marriages, the Maces sought to achieve a balance between a scholarly and practical treatment of the subject. Contemporary issues are identified and further insight is provided through a con- sideration of implications concerning pre- vious research an accompanying exercises that conclude many of the chapters. The book is divided into three sections. The first is an introduction, explaining how the book came to be written, methods and contexts of data collection, and identified needs and issues. The second section ad- dresses external or situational forces that affect the relationship of the clergy couple. Role expectations are explored; for example, are excessive expectations attributable to congregational demands or are they more accurately assessed in terms of clergy self- expectations? Other common factors such as professional time demands unique to clergy, frequent relocation, the parsonage system, and comparatively small professional salaries are evaluated for possible influences upon the marriage. The final section addresses the more personal aspects related to clergy couples. Understandings of the nature of vocation and "Christian Marriage," the clergy family and resources for marital growth are discussed in these chapters. This book will serve as a practical and infor- mative resource for individual clergy couples, couple discussion groups and church offi- 484 FAMILY RELATIONS July 1981 This content downloaded from 195.34.79.174 on Wed, 18 Jun 2014 03:21:13 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp Article Contents p. 484 Issue Table of Contents Family Relations, Vol. 30, No. 3 (Jul., 1981), pp. 325-488 Front Matter [pp. 325-418] Education Marital Instability in the United States: Some Correlates and Recent Changes [pp. 329-338] Interpersonal Violence among Married and Cohabiting Couples [pp. 339-347] Factors Related to the Adjustment of Divorcing Men [pp. 349-360] Difference in Family Coalitions and Hierarchies between Normals and Neurotics [pp. 361-365] Accumulated Stress of Life Changes and Interpersonal Effectiveness in the Family [pp. 367-371] Automated Go-Betweens: Mate Selection of Tomorrow? [pp. 373-376] Singles: An Examination of Two Stereotypes [pp. 377-385] An Evaluation of a Family Life Education Delivery System for Young Families [pp. 387-394] The Groomal Shower: A Variation of the American Bridal Shower [pp. 395-401] When Out-of-Town Relatives Visit [pp. 403-409] Child Rearing and Single-Parent Fathers [pp. 411-417] Coping with Conflict between Professional and Maternal Roles [pp. 419-426] Adoptees in Search of Their Past: Policy Induced Strain on Adoptive Families and Birth Parents [pp. 427-434] Television Food Commercials Aimed at Children, Family Grocery Shopping, and Mother-Child Interactions [pp. 435-439] Oppositional Behavior of Preschool Children: Theory and Intervention [pp. 440-446] Variations in Preferred Care Alternatives for the Elderly: Family versus Nonfamily Sources [pp. 447-451] Counseling Counseling the Romantic [pp. 452-458] The Family Therapist and Death: A Profile [pp. 459-462] Coping with Accidentally Killing Another Person: A Case Study Approach [pp. 463-473] Custody Alternatives: Defining the Best Interests of the Children [pp. 474-479] Contemporary Family and Human Development Materials Teaching-Education Review: untitled [p. 480] Review: untitled [pp. 480-481] Review: untitled [p. 481] Review: untitled [pp. 481-482] Review: untitled [p. 482] Review: untitled [p. 482] Counseling-Services Review: untitled [p. 483] Review: untitled [p. 483] Review: untitled [pp. 483-484] Review: untitled [p. 484] Review: untitled [pp. 484-485] Review: untitled [p. 485] Review: untitled [p. 485] Review: untitled [pp. 485-486] Media Review: untitled [p. 486] Review: untitled [pp. 486-487] Back Matter [pp. 488-488]