Chapter 12 Review

• Given the diversity in contemporary family structures, scholars define family in very inclusive ways. Families come in myriad forms, including nuclear, extended, step-, cohabiting couples, single-parent, and voluntary kin families.

• Families solidify their sense of identity by sharing family stories. These narrative accounts of birth, courtship, and survival bind children, parents, and other relatives together.

• Regardless of the structure of a family, Family Communication Patterns Theory suggests that most families’ communication is determined by two dimensions: conversation orientation and conformity orientation.

• These two dimensions often lead to four family communication patterns: consensual, pluralistic, protective, and laissez-faire. Such families have very different communication beliefs and practices, which shape interpersonal relationships among family members.

• Three of the most important strategies for maintaining family relationships are positivity, assurances, and self-disclosure. Technology is making it easier for family members to communicate such maintenance strategies, especially when distance separates them.

• The ways family members deal with dialectical tensions can be understood through Communication Privacy Management Theory. These boundaries are defined by family privacy rules: the conditions governing what family members can talk about, how they can discuss such topics, and who should have access to family-relevant information.

• A common challenge in stepfamily transition is triangulation. Such loyalty conflicts can make individuals feel torn between family members.

• Parental favoritism can include both intangible and tangible forms of affection and often drives a wedge between siblings, in addition to other long-term effects.

• Dealing with interparental conflict is one of the hardest family communication challenges. Such fights can have long-term and devastating effects on both parents and the children, as explained by the spillover hypothesis.