A detailed review of current research and ideas concerning both communication processes and family functioning is provided in this valuable contribution to the literature. Divided into three parts the book focuses on: communication of family members over time; the role of interaction in various family relationships; and the association between family structure and communication. Readers are provided with a set of questions that they can use to examine their own and other's research and the chapters also illustrate a range of methodological and//or theoretical positions.A detailed review of current research and ideas concerning both communication processes and family functioning is provided in this valuable contribution to the literature. Divided into three parts the book focuses on: communication of family members over time; the role of interaction in various family relationships; and the association between family structure and communication. Readers are provided with a set of questions that they can use to examine their own and other's research and the chapters also illustrate a range of methodological and//or theoretical positions.PART ONE: THE DEVELOPMENT OF FAMILY COMMUNICATION PATTERNS Communication in Infancy - Marguerite Stevenson Barratt The Socialization of Person-Centered Communication - Brant R Burleson, Jesse G Delia and James L Applegate Parents' Contributions to their Children's Social-Cognitive and Communication Skills Parent-Adolescent Relationships - Patricia Noller Accounts and Demystification of Courtship - Catherine A Surra, Michelle L Batchelder and Debra K Hughes PART TWO: FAMILY RELATIONSHIPS IN PROCESS How Parenthood Affects Marriage - Ted L Huston and Anita L Vangelisti Family Interaction during Problem Solving - Samuel Vuchinich and Jospeh Angelelli Family Conflict, Divorce, and Children's Adjustment - Susan Gano-Phillips and Frank D FinchlÓ"