The adoptive mother of a hearing-impaired preschool girl describes ways the family has integrated language practice into every facet of the child's life. The paper focuses on practicing speech, learning language, getting ready for reading, using computers, family involvement in signing, socialization and independence, child care, preschool team…

Discusses trend towards involving criminal offenders in substance abuse programs and utilizing outpatient settings in treatment. Appraises the treatment performance of both court-referred and voluntary clients and the impacts criminal-justice-referred clients may have upon other persons in treatment programs to which they are admitted. Discusses…

Discusses definitions of family; forms of language and communication; and beliefs about health, illness, and disability that need to be understood by those involved in early intervention programs for young children with disabilities and their families. (PCB)

Describes WCASA (Wilmington Cluster Against Substance Abuse) Families Matter! demonstration project designed to train low-income, urban, minority parents in family drug abuse prevention strategies. Discusses preliminary findings of project evaluation which show strong parent support for the project. (Author/CM)

The parents of 1,684 children receiving school speech-language services responded to a survey assessing parents' views, needs, and characteristics. Parents fell into three categories: 51 percent wanted a more family-oriented parent-school partnership, 21 percent wished to be more involved within the existing service delivery program, and 28…

Suggestions are offered for strengthening the basic speech, language, and communication skills of young children with hearing impairments, during ordinary periods of interaction at home. Suggestions focus on auditory training, speech drills, and reading, as well as formal and informal language instruction for all family members. (JDD)

Examined is the impact of childhood head trauma on the family, focusing on cognitive, psychomotor, emotional, and behavioral sequelae; a review of relevant research pertaining to family reactions following head trauma; and a description of family needs, coping abilities, intervention, and advocacy. (JDD)

Explored the effects of familial responsiveness and behavior control on internalizing and externalizing symptoms in adolescent psychiatric inpatients. Found that lower levels of familial responsiveness were associated with externalizing symptoms, and with dismissive attachment representations. (HTH)

This article presents a triadic interaction model that builds on and expands the strengths of the parent-infant dyad by providing contextual and interpersonal support for their interactions. The model gives explicit attention to the interactions among the three members of the early intervention triad: child, parent, and interventionist.…

Evaluates a social work program in a rural community designed to promote autonomous decision making by educating elderly people (n=32) about advance directives. Results revealed a continuum of willingness to address future decision making. The primacy of the family emerged throughout the study, suggesting that advance directives may be a family…

Notes that on a child's first day of school, lasting impressions are formed for child, parents, and practitioners. Suggests that the day should be made special, and practitioners should have realistic expectations of the child. Also suggests ways to help establish a bond between home and school life, including making positive phone calls to…

The best help parents can offer students with their homework is instituting a formal study program. Rather than assisting with reading, writing, and arithmetic, parents should spend more time teaching students to organize, budget time, plan ahead, concentrate, handle responsibility, and solve problems. (SM)

Survey responses of 2,427 married members of the Virginia Army National Guard and 1,540 members' spouses suggest that spouses are strongly committed to career continuance with the Guard and have greater preference for continuance than do Guard members themselves. Implications for family policies in the military reserves are discussed. (SLD)

Presents a list of 15 suggestions to help parents boost their children's self-esteem and create a safe, emotionally secure environment that offers a sense of belonging, purpose, and personal competence as well as the freedom to develop a unique identity. (SM)

A survey of 180 early intervention professionals found significant discrepancies between current and ideal family involvement in early intervention programs, specifically in parent involvement in decisions about child assessment; parent participation in assessment, team meetings, and decision making; and provision of family services. Barriers to…