Bibliographies
The following bibliography has been compiled from the Australian Family & Society Abstracts database and other resources held in the Institute's library. Where available a link to the document on the Web is provided. Most items can be borrowed from the Institute's library via the inter library loan system. Online publications in PDF format require Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Early Intervention - Marriage and relationship education
A new approach to old problems.
Sturmey,
Ingrid
Threshold no.80 Apr 2004: 18-19, table
Relationships Australia conducts the Good Connecting course for couples
in Melbourne. This article outlines how the course operates, what couples
learn and do during the course, and some responses.
A new inventory for cohabitating couples.
Craddock, A E
Threshold no.76 Apr 2003: 23-24
The
author describes the new PREPARE-CC inventory that Prepare-Enrich
(Australia) has added to its range of relationship education tools. It is
designed for cohabiting couples that intend to marry.
An educational response to living together.
Andrews, K; Andrews, M; Crawford, C
Threshold no.76 Apr 2003:
25-30
More Australian couples are cohabiting before marriage.
The authors look at the international success rates of these couples in
comparison with those who do not live together before marriage. They
investigate possible reasons for the negative impact of cohabitation on
marital stability and consider the consequences for marriage
education.
Commitment and cohabitation with stepfamilies.
Martin, S
Threshold no.76 Apr 2003: 31-32
The author
looks at some of the complexities of stepfamilies and provides a list of
dos and don'ts for marriage educators working with stepfamilies.
Competencies and capacity building.
Simons,
M
Threshold no.75 Jan 2003: 29
A review of the
competency standards for marriage and relationship education brought to
light significant changes in the field. Revision of the standards has
expanded the range of skills and services that educators must provide.
The author applauds the development of a national framework to shape the
training and professional development of educators. She describes the
capacity building process to follow, which will focus on the use of
technology to support learning and development: for instance, web based
resources, power point presentations, on line tutorials, and the
introduction of a network of regional advisors.
Couple relationship education in Australia.
Halford, W Kim; Simons, Michele
Family Process v.44 no.2 Jun 2005:
147-159
There is government policy support and some funding
support for marriage education in Australia, but this article questions
whether couples at high risk for relationship problems are being reached.
The approaches offered by current relationship education services in
Australia are reviewed. It is suggested that evidence based programs
tailored to the individual needs of couples show promise in delivering
effective outcomes, but emphasises that the success of programs depends
on a commitment to relationship education by the government and
collaboration between researchers and service providers to achieve the
delivery of appropriate programs.
Exploring past relationships with FOCCUS.
Hertzog, B
Threshold no.77 Jul 2003: 34-35
The term
Family of Origin (FOO) is used by marriage educators and counsellors to
raise the awareness of couples of their family culture in their growing
up years. FOO plays an important role in how people show affection, deal
with conflict, express encouragement, use power, handle money, discipline
children and view success. This article explores how the culture of a
previous relationship effects remarriage, with FOCCUS, an inventory which
assists in marriage education.
From learning to living.
Neville, Bernie
Threshold no.81 Jul 2004: 20-25
Most of the significant
learning that occurs in our lives happens through experience, rather than
through being taught. This article discusses experiential learning, which
occurs as follows: experience, reflection on experience, evaluation of
principles, reflection on experience, action or new experience. It
considers what method of learning best suits marriage education, what
makes for good teaching in marriage education, different learning styles
and differences between individuals, and different types of
intelligence.
International perspectives on couple relationship
education.
Markman, Howard, J; Halford, W Kim
Family
Process v.44 no.2 Jun 2005: 139-146
This article introduces a
special section of the journal that focuses on a new set of services and
service delivery systems that have the potential to reach couples and
individuals, and couple functioning, namely couple relationship
education. The authors begin by describing the theory and research that
underlie the increased interest in relationship education, with a strong
emphasis on social policy issues. They include a discussion of
advantages and disadvantages resulting from government being involved in
promoting healthy relationships, and highlight issues and future
directions for the relationship education field.
Living the dream.
Jeffery, Michael
Threshold no.82 Oct 2004: 30-31
The rising divorce rate in
Australia is resulting in an increasing number of single parent families,
most often with the mother as the resident parent. In this edited version
of his opening speech to the second National Catholic Family Gathering,
held in April 2004, the author discusses the implications of this social
change, particularly the effects of fewer consistently available male
role models. He argues that fathers need to be present in the family
environment, and that pre marriage education is a valuable means of
helping achieve stable, successful marriages. The author affirms the role
of the nuclear family in our society.
Making marriage and family work: part IX.
Burnard, D
Relatewell v.7 no.2 Jun 2003: 8-11
The theme
of this part of the Making Marriage and Family Work series is that men
and women need to think straight if they are to nourish their most
significant relationship. What goes on in our heads is as important as
what goes on in our hearts. Making marriage and family work involves mind
power not will power, the author argues. Will power grows out of
obligation. Mind power is expressed in and nourishes a clear direction
and purpose which is shared and constantly developing. The importance of
searching for meaning, of developing a strong sense of self, and of
reaching out to the other are highlighted, and the author argues that
mind power helps us to recognise that marriage is not primarily about
happiness but about growing up and maturing.
Making marriage, domestic relationships and family work. Part
XIX.
Burnard, Don
Relatewell v.9 no.4 Dec 2005:
8-13
The real issue in making a relationship work is not
taking vows or moving in together, but keeping the vows and working on
the integrity and maturity necessary to make a family work. The article
compares marriage relationships with de facto relationships. It
discusses the responsibility of becoming parents; the value of pre
marriage courses; the influence of the media; inadequate motivations for
marriage, including love, hope and desire; pre marriage education; mate
selection; alcohol; engagement; and the need for parents to be proactive
in promoting relationships.
PREPARE.
Aspin, R
Threshold no.75 Jan
2003: 28
The author, a PREPARE pre marriage education
counsellor, describes how he approaches each session. He points out that
men can often be resistant to attending such programs, and he explains
how he tries to counter this resistance.
Preparing for the day after the big day!
Martin, Meredith; Martin, Gavin
Threshold no.81 Jul 2004: 32-33
The marriage education course taken by the authors helped them
to be prepared for, and to look forward to, the time after the wedding
day. They outline what the course covered, what they learnt and how it
helped them.
Quality marriage prep when cohabitors choose to
marry.
Markey, B
Threshold no.76 Apr 2003: 21-23
Engaged couples need to discuss their cohabitation in
preparation for marriage. The author outlines some of the
issues that she believes need to be raised by the marriage educators of
these couples.
Recent progress in marriage and relationship education
in Australia.
Parker, Robyn
Melbourne, Vic:
Australian Family Relationships Clearinghouse, Australian Institute of
Family Studies, 2007, 9p (AFRC briefing no.3), Online
Rising
rates of marriage breakdown in Australia have led to increasing interest
in and support for strategies that help couples withstand both the
everyday hassles and less common stressors that impact on relationships.
One of these strategies involves the provision of marriage and
relationship education services. This paper summarises recent
developments aimed at addressing challenges and directions for the field
of marriage and relationship education, originally outlined by Halford
(1999). Issues of service accessibility, effectively incorporating
research into practice, tailoring program content to specific clients,
and evaluation of programs aimed specifically at couples preparing to
marry or remarry, or those wanting to enrich or adapt to changes in their
marriage, relationship or life circumstances, are examined. (Author
abstract)
Relationship education and responses to government policy
initiatives.
Van Acker, Elizabeth
In: Family
Services Australia Conference proceedings 2005. Deakin West, ACT: Family
Services Australia, 2005, 5p, Online (PDF 26K)
Australian
government policies affecting relationship education
are discussed here. The paper looks at the new Family
Relationship Centres, the difficulties of convincing
the public about the benefits of relationship education
in an era of diverse relationships, and strategies
to improve public awareness about relationship education
programs.
Relationship education services.
Simons, M; Parker,
R
Family Matters no.63 Spring - Summer 2002: 77-79 and Online (PDF
114K)
The Australian Institute of Family Studies in
partnership with the Centre for Research in Education, Equity and Work
undertook a survey of relationship education services across the country
on behalf of the Commonwealth Department of Family and Community
Services, known as the Study of Australian Relationship Education
Services. This survey was to identify the nature and range of
relationship education programs, identify gaps in service provision, and
develop a classification system to distinguish among the various types of
programs available. Recommendations made on the basis of the study
pertain to various areas of service provision, including program design
and development and the implementation of evaluation frameworks. This
article outlines the outcomes of the study and the recommendations that
emanated from it.
Research and evaluation in marriage and relationship
education.
Parker, Robyn
Family Matters no.71 Winter
2005: 32-35
Marriage and relationship education has been
available in some form in Australia for more than half a century. In
recent years, the availability of funding for marriage and relationship
education programs and the need for accountability that accompanies such
funding, have helped engender a greater focus on two related aspects of
service delivery, namely research and assessment of programs.
Researching and assessing or evaluating marriage and relationship
education programs present challenges for practitioners. However, the
author illustrates that the process is not necessarily as onerous as
might be thought.
Sticking together: learning the art of
commitment.
Simons, Michele
Threshold no.83 Mar
2005: 12-13
How can an understanding of commitment be
developed in participants in relationship and marriage education courses,
and how can people be encouraged to work at maintaining commitment in
their relationships? This article discusses the views of Scott Stanley
as expressed in his book 'The heart of commitment'. Stanley presents
commitment in marriage as a combination of interpersonal commitment, or
dedication, and institutional commitment, or constraint; that is, a
combination of self motivation and societal obligation. The article
considers how Stanley's ideas could be used by Australian relationship
educators.
Strengthening the friendship at the heart of the
relationship.
Matuszek, Anne
Threshold no.80 Apr
2004: 16-17
This group study for couple enrichment was based
on John Gottman's seven principles for making marriage work. This article
discusses the principles, how the study was carried out and some
outcomes.
The future of couple relationship education: suggestions on
how it can make a difference.
Halford, W Kim
Family
Relations v.53 no.5 2004: 559-566
Suggestions for enhancing
the effectiveness of couple relationship education are offered in this
article. The article discusses current approaches to relationship
education, the inventories and skills training approaches, when couples
are likely to be most receptive to relationship education, which couples
will benefit most from relationship education, and how to make
relationship education more accessible.