SUMMARY: In 1942 fifteen-year-old Katherine travels to Sydney to stay with her mother's parents for the duration of the war, but, when Japanese submarines appear in Sydney Harbour, Katherine is sent inland to stay with her other grandmother at Parson's Creek.

Any parent who has raised more than one child is likely to be keenly aware of subtle or even striking differences among their offspring. The central premise of this volume is that children bring personal qualities to their relationships with other family members that help shape family interaction, relationships, and even processes that family researchers have called "parenting." The chapters address how children's personal qualities make their mark on families in ways that may in turn influence children's subsequent development. The volume is based on the presentations and discussions from a national symposium on "Children's influence on family dynamics: The neglected side of family relationships" held at the Pennsylvania State University, as the ninth in a series of annual interdisciplinary symposia focused on family issues. It is divided into four parts, each dealing with a different aspect of the topic. Part I sets the stage by focusing on the features of children that make a difference, as well as the kinds of research designs that are likely to shed light on the role of child influences. Part II focuses on early childhood, particularly the role of infant temperament and other individual differences in very young children in shaping their parents' behaviors, reactions in turn that feedback and influence the developing child. Part III focuses on adolescence, a time when young people are able to exert more choice in how they spend their time and who they spend it with. Part IV pulls the themes of the volume together and points the way for future research.

This text provides for the first time in book form an exploration of the communicative aspects of the darker side of family life, ranging from, for example, severe acts of violence to more subtle forms of conflict. In addition to offering a working definition of the concept of the "dark side" in the family context, the authors propose the Darkness Model of Family Communication that integrates relevant literature in new and significant ways. Researchers, teachers and advanced students alike will benefit from the holistic and theoretical approach to the topic advanced through this volume. Readers are also encouraged to process the material by reviewing discussion questions and the case study of the Moore family at the end of each chapter. Chapter topics include: an overview of the "dark side" of family communication individual influences on the darkness of family communication the dark side of dyadic family life familial interaction structure and the dark side dark family communication in a context of darkness - socio-cultural influences on family life concluding reflections on the study of dark family communication The Dark Side of Family Communication offers an integrative understanding of the dark side of family communication and a theoretical mechanism for understanding related scholarship. It will be essential reading for all students and scholars of family communication.

This text provides for the first time in book form an exploration of the communicative aspects of the darker side of family life, ranging from, for example, severe acts of violence to more subtle forms of conflict. In addition to offering a working definition of the concept of the "dark side" in the family context, the authors propose the Darkness Model of Family Communication that integrates relevant literature in new and significant ways. Researchers, teachers and advanced students alike will benefit from the holistic and theoretical approach to the topic advanced through this volume. Readers are also encouraged to process the material by reviewing discussion questions and the case study of the Moore family at the end of each chapter. Chapter topics include: an overview of the "dark side" of family communication individual influences on the darkness of family communication the dark side of dyadic family life familial interaction structure and the dark side dark family communication in a context of darkness - socio-cultural influences on family life concluding reflections on the study of dark family communication The Dark Side of Family Communication offers an integrative understanding of the dark side of family communication and a theoretical mechanism for understanding related scholarship. It will be essential reading for all students and scholars of family communication.