Machine generated contents note: 1. What Is a Family? 1 -- Defining Families 2 -- The Rise and Decline of the Traditional Family 3 -- The Family Values Agenda 9 -- The Hegemony of the Traditional Family 13 -- New Alternatives and Perspectives From Diverse Families 15 -- Organization and Perspective of This Book 16 -- Discussion Questions 19 -- Suggestions for Further Reading 19 -- 2. Foster Families 20 -- Prevalence and Demographic Characteristics of the -- Foster Family 21 -- Historical Background and the Social-Cultural Context 23 -- Legal and Policy Issues 27 -- Stigma and Stereotypes of the Foster Family 31 -- Family Structure 33 -- Family Dynamics 42 -- Implications for Child Development 46 -- Variations Among Foster Families 47 -- Implications for Policy 53 -- Implications for Practice 55 -- Implications for Research 56 -- Discussion Questions 57 -- Suggestons for Further Reading 58 -- 3. Adoptive Families 59 -- Historical Background and the Social-Cultural Context 60 -- Prevalence and Demographic Characteristics of Adoptees -- and Adoptive Families 63 -- Legal and Policy Issues 65 -- Open and Closed Adoption 69 -- Transracial Adoption 71 -- International Adoptions 75 -- Family Structure 78 -- The Dynamics of the Adoptive Family 85 -- Implications for Children 91 -- Variations Within the Adoptive Family 92 -- Implications for Practice 96 -- Implications for Research 97 -- Discussion Questions 98 -- Suggestions for Further Reading 99 -- 4. Single-Parent Families 100 -- Prevalence and Demographic Characteristics of -- Single-Parent Families 101 -- Historical Background and Legal Issues 103 -- Social-Cultural Context and Policy Issues 105 -- Single-Parent Families and Poverty 109 -- Stereotypes and Discrimination Against Single-Parent -- Families 111 -- The Experience of Divorce: The Custodial Mother's -- Perspective 116 -- Implications for Children 119 -- Variations Among Single-Parent Families 124 -- Implications for Policy 128 -- Implications for Practice 132 -- Implications for Research 132 -- Discussion Questions 133 -- Suggestions for Further Reading 134 -- 5. Stepfamilies 135 -- Historical Background and the Social-Cultural Context 135 -- Prevalence and Demographic Characteristics of -- the Stepfamily 136 -- Legal and Policy Issues 137 -- Variations Among Stepfamilies 138 -- Family Structure 139 -- The Making of the Stepfamily 143 -- Family Dynamics 146 -- Implications for Child Development 153 -- Implications for Policy and Practice 155 -- Implications for Research 158 -- Discussion Questions 159 -- Suggestions for Further Reading 159 -- 6. Lesbian and Gay Families 160 -- Historical Background and the Social-Cultural Context 161 -- Legal and Policy Issues 163 -- Homophobia, Stereotypes, and Discrimination 166 -- Family Structure 168 -- Family Dynamics 172 -- Implications for Child Development 176 -- Variations Among Gay and Lesbian Families 178 -- Implications for Policy 179 -- Implications for Practice 179 -- Implications for Research 180 -- Discussion Questions 181 -- Suggestions for Further Reading 182 -- 7. Grandmother-Headed Families 183 -- Prevalence and Demographic Characteristics of the -- Grandmother-Headed Family 183 -- Historical Background and the Social-Cultural Context 184 -- Stigma 188 -- Caregiving: A Women's Issue 189 -- Family Structure and Dynamics 191 -- Implications for Grandchildren 196 -- Variations Among Grandmother-Headed Families 196 -- Implications for Policy 197 -- Implications for Practice 198 -- Implications for Research 198 -- Discussion Questions 200 -- Suggestions for Further Reading 200 -- 8. Unraveling the Family: What We Can Learn From Family -- Diversity 201 -- Family Diversity: The Advantages of Difference 202 -- Challenging the Hegemony of the Traditional Family 203 -- Family Diversity: Implications for Family Theory 210 -- Implications for Research 213 -- Implications for Policy 215 -- A Framework for Understanding Families 217 -- Discussion Questions 218 -- Suggestions for Further Reading 219.

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