Noted Family Researcher Examines Emergency State of Modern Marriage in New Article: The Death of 'Till Death Us Do Part'

7/16/2002

From: Carol M. Anderson, Ph.D., Editor, 412-624-0804 e-mail: editor@FamilyProcess.org

ROCHESTER, N.Y., July 16 -- William M. Pinsof, noted family researcher examines the emergency state of modern marriage, the predictable nature of divorce and resulting social implications. The concept of being married for life is no longer a valid expectation, divorce must be normalized, and other pair-bonding unions must be accepted as society evolves. The article appears in the summer issue of Family Process.

In his article, "The Death of 'Till Death Us Do Part:' The Transformation of Pair Bonding in the 20th Century," Dr. William M. Pinsof shows that during the 20th Century, marriage underwent a fundamental transformation. The crux of this transformation was that divorce replaced death as the primary terminator of marriage in the West (Europe, North America and Australia/New Zealand). He goes on to analyze the causes of this transformation and explores its implications for social policy, family law, family research and therapy. Pinsof concludes his article by arguing that current policies, theories and practices are out of step with the new realities of human pair bonding that emerged at the end of the 20th century and advocates the creation of a new paradigm that acknowledges and respects the realities of how people actually pair up and live their lives.

BACKGROUND:

Dr. William Pinsof is a clinical psychologist and a marital and family therapist. He is the president of The Family Institute at Northwestern University, director of the Center for Applied Psychological and Family Studies at Northwestern University, and an adjunct professor in Northwestern's School of Education and Social Policy. His academic and research work has focused on evaluating the outcome of marital and family therapy, understanding the process of marital and family therapy, and the integration of different therapeutic approaches for maximal cost effectiveness. He has edited two books on psychotherapy research, including the special issue of the Journal of Marital and Family Therapy dedicated to reviewing all of the controlled research on the outcomes of couple and family therapy.

The article is part of a Special Issue of the journal Family Process, which provides a comprehensive examination of what happened to marriage in the 20th century. The issue is entitled "Marriage in the 20th Century in Western Civilization: Trends, Research, Therapy, and Perspectives." Other papers in this journal issue include a review of the development of couples therapy by Al Gurman and Peter Fraenkel, review of research on couples by John Gottman and Cliff Notarius, reflections on marriage in the 20th century from a feminist perspective by Cheryl Rampage, and a discussion of 20th century changes in African American marriages by Elaine Pinderhughes. Online commentary is open and available at http://www.FamilyProcess.org

Family Process is a multidisciplinary international journal that publishes research, training, and theoretical contributions in the broad area of family therapy. Founded in 1962, it is widely considered to be the pre-eminent publication of its kind in the family therapy field.