Journal of Family Theory & Review最新文献

Since the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, Version 5 reconceptualized autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in 2013, ASD research has broadened. To summarize what the field has identified regarding challenges and strengths in autistic romantic relationships, we conducted a content analysis review of peer-reviewed articles published from 2013 to 2024 using a systematic lens. Of the total possible relevant articles identified, 42 articles met our inclusion (peer reviewed articles) and exclusion criteria (e.g., focus on autistic children). The literature revealed several challenges in these relationships, including sensory sensitivities, stigmas, and communication barriers. Some strengths, such as pattern recognition and truthful communication, were found, but overall strengths-based research was lacking. There was no literature including relationships with both partners on the autism spectrum, and most studies only included individual-level data. Other gaps in the literature include barriers to relational support and limited inclusion of queer relationships. Future directions for research, practice, and policy are discussed.

Parents of children with disabilities are distinctly involved with their children inside and outside of school as they partake in special education procedures and support individualized child needs. Yet standards for parent involvement are largely designed for parents of children without disabilities, making them potentially less meaningful for parents whose children are enrolled in special education. Conceptual parent involvement frameworks are the foundation for existing involvement standards and practices; thus, they may benefit from expansions that support the use of these models for families with children in special education. We explore the alignment of existing parent involvement frameworks within the context of special education and parenting a child with a disability. To advance inclusivity for families of children receiving special education services, we offer considerations for future conceptual work on parent involvement and discuss possible implications of such expansions for research, practice, and policy.

This systematic review follows the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) and examines empirical studies on the division of housework between mixed-gender partners in North America. Its objective is to provide a comprehensive overview of the determinants of that division and to critically review the methods used recently. Databases (PsycINFO, Scopus) were searched to identify empirical studies published in the last decade (2014–2024). Data including a summary of main results for the 38 included studies were extracted. All reviewed studies confirm that, in the past decade in North America, women have shouldered most of the responsibility for housework. Many of the determinants identified have a differential impact on men's and women's contributions to household labor, indicating that gender is intertwined with many personal and couple characteristics. Future studies should consider using dyadic and longitudinal designs to consider how both partners' characteristics interact and evolve over time.

Stress can negatively impact individual and relationship functioning. Romantic partner support is often assessed as a moderator of the effect of stress on well-being. However, partner support is also conceptualized as a response to stress, highlighting a direct connection between stress and the support process. The support mobilization and deterioration models make competing claims about whether support increases or decreases in the face of stress, respectively. To clarify these rival assertions, this review synthesizes research on the direct effects of stress on partner support, identifying the circumstances in which support may occur. Results suggest that stress can prompt or inhibit romantic partner support depending on characteristics of the context in which it is elicited and study design. Discussion centers on methodological approaches to further clarify the effects of stress on support. Theoretical approaches to resilience must account for the influences of stressors on the resilience processes that are required to adapt.

In this article, I share my experiences navigating identity formation as an adult adopted in childhood. I examine my unique and complicated perspective both as an adoptee and as an adoptive parent. By engaging with others, I highlight the inner world of adoptees—an aspect of identity that is often difficult to capture in theory or practice. Their experiences are shaped by complex, fragile emotions that resist easy explanation. This article reflects my exploration with pre-adoptive artifacts, such as photographs, clothing, birth and foster documents, and letters, which helped illuminate facets of my birth-through-adoption history. When shared and critically examined with other adoptees, these objects can serve as valuable tools for addressing sensitive questions about belonging, selfhood, and family. Artifacts associated with adoption also provide emotional depth to identity exploration. Through this reflection, I offer insights into the ever-conflicting ways adoptees become adopted.

Several theoretical frameworks have been used to understand variability in relationship functioning, particularly why some couples experience declines and others do not. Although methodological innovations, specifically Group-Based Trajectory Modeling (GBTM), could be used to test these theories, work using this method has been largely exploratory in nature. The current article highlights the importance of generating refutable hypotheses when using GBTM approaches to evaluate specific theoretical frameworks (i.e., the enduring dynamics model, emergent distress model, gradual disillusionment model, vulnerability-stress-adaptation model, and relational turbulence theory). Using these prominent theories in the relationship development literature, we depict how scholars can generate specific, refutable hypotheses within a GBTM approach, therefore connecting theoretical tenets with the output GBTM approaches produce and providing critically needed theory refinement and expansion. We conclude with a discussion on how future scholarship in family science could better bridge the gap between theory and GBTM to strengthen the field's theoretical foundations.

In the last decade, legal recognition of same-sex marriage has been rapidly developing in Asia. This article asks: what is the current state of development of same-sex marriage across Asian societies? What explains the development of same-sex marriage seen in some Asian societies but not others? It finds that demographic explanations are least able to explain intra-regional differences in the development of same-sex marriage in Asia, while economic, institutional, and cultural explanations are able to partly explain the development in different parts of Asia. The article proposes that an eclectic combination of economic, institutional, and cultural explanations is needed to understand intra-regional differences in the development of same-sex marriage in Asia. The analysis provides useful pointers for observing future development of same-sex marriage in Asia. Studying same-sex marriage provides a useful lens for studying economic, institutional, and cultural issues in Asia.

Sociohistorical changes in recent decades have fundamentally altered the possibilities for LGBTQ+ family life—that is, for LGBTQ+ adults to form partnerships and enter parenthood. Through its emphasis on the role of sociohistorical change to shape individual lives and create cohorts of shared experience, life course theory (LCT) offers a distinct perspective for understanding generations of LGBTQ+ individuals and their families. In this article, we first acknowledge generational sociohistorical change that has shaped sexual and gender diversity in relationships and family life and highlight the role of LCT to illuminate LGBTQ+ families across generations. We then consider concepts from the life course perspective that are particularly relevant for understanding generational changes for LGBTQ+ identities and families: the turning point of coming out and linked lives. These constructs offer a framework for analyzing generational changes in the way LGBTQ+ adults experience partnerships, parenting, and aging over the life course. We conclude by discussing future directions for incorporating the life course theoretical framework into research on LGBTQ+ families.

This special collection aims to extend understanding of LGBTQ+ couples and families from multiple theoretical and international perspectives, in the context of remarkable sociohistorical change. Five articles address changes in LGBTQ+ family patterns—and within LGBTQ+ families, attending to differences across generations and considering contextual and cultural differences. Together these articles offer a range of theoretical integration, adaptation, or application, each with the goal of deepening understanding of LGBTQ+ relationships in families in times of social change.