Exciting developments in family theory construction over the past few years demand a constant survey and evaluation of measurable progress. This paper documents some developmental trends that have taken place in the use of family theory and in the theory construction itself, as well as the relation of theory to advances in methodology. In summary, the findings of this trend analysis are: first, it is evident that the relative lack of family theory continues. Second, in respect to the utilization of conceptual frameworks, family researchers continue to study the family from an individual rather than an interactional perspective. No marked changes are noted either in the type of data-gathering techniques used nor in the size of the samples utilized. Thus, the trends reveal a slow but steady improvement in the use of theories as bases for articles published in the family field. (Author)