Understanding Diverse Families: What Practitioners Need to Know

Today's mental health clinicians face a rapidly changing clientele. Divorce, remarriage, multiracial marriages, different types of adoption, openly gay and lesbian relationships\m\all have significantly altered the nature and composition of families. At the same time, clinicians in today's managed care environment are working with an increasingly diverse clientele. Addressing an important need, this illuminating volume is designed to help practitioners work effectively with diversity in this challenging new environment. It confronts myths and stereotypes about what is considered "normal" and what constitutes a "family," insightfully examines a range of healthy families with creative family structures, and expands our notions about how families work.