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CHAPTER 12
FAMILY COMMUNICATION AND WELL-BEING
TRUE/FALSE
others who want the system to remain the same no matter how painful that
may be.
improve their relationships are called reactors.
system in balance no matter how painful that balance is.
bodies to routinely see how relationships are doing.
sexual activity tend to be discussed more often between parents and children
than about smoking and tobacco use.
about struggles and joys in their relationship.
preventing adolescent substance abuse.
attending each other’s doctor’s appointments.
information regarding their health.
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health problem with the rest of the family.
well-versed in new technologies, they also rely heavily on analog
communication.
towards marriage, male-female roles, and the significance of extended
families.
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. Which is not a conclusion from Bochner and Eisenberg’s study of family processes
that enhances optimal family functioning?
A. Parents are in charge of the children and direct their activities.
2. Ting Lee and his wife, Anna, want to improve their marriage. Which of the
following would be least productive?
D. Identify trouble spots jointly and plan how to avoid them
3. According to Kiecolt-Glaser and Newton, which of the following is not a reason
why husbands gain greater health benefits from marriage than wives?
A. Wives tend to attempt to manage their husbands’ health habits
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4. Which statement was not a conclusion found in follow-up research in marriage
enrichment programs?
A. A strong positive change in behavior after the program but partial decline at
follow-up
5. Family therapists are adopting approaches across cultures for which of the following
reasons:
A. Different cultures have different attitudes toward marriage.
6. According to research, farmers are more likely to wear sunscreen to protect
themselves from their heightened risk for sun exposure and skin cancer if:
D. They have a family history of skin cancer
7. The importance of family communication when coping with cancer has been
supported by which of the following research findings?
D. Parents of pediatric cancer patients experience less post-traumatic stress disorder
if they feel they can talk openly with their child about their illness
8. Vangelisti reported three of the following as communication problems in families.
Which one is not a problem or as serious as the others?
A. Failure to take the other’s perspective when listening
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9. Which of the following is not cited as a reason why caregivers may feel stress when
caring for an ill family member?
A. Financial concerns
10. Family members may be unlikely to disclose a diagnosis of a genetic illness if
D. Their families typically avoid health talk
11. “Don’t have sex until you are married, but, if you do, use a condom,” is which type
of family health rule?
A. Abstinence
12. Family members may influence each other’s health in the following ways:
A. Directly by encouraging health promoting behaviors
13. Which of the following scenarios is the best example of a prevarication style of
disclosure about a genetic illness?
D. Withholding disclosure completely from other family members
14. In circumstances of genetic conditions, issues of privacy and conflict may occur in
families when:
A. Families can’t afford genetic testing
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15. Which of the following tend to be the impact of financial strain on families?
A. Social networks change as resources diminish
16. Cyberbullying includes all of the following behaviors except:
D. Repeatedly killing a player’s avatar
17. Which of the following programs focuses on the goals of children’s behavior and
responsible parenting practices?
D. PAIRS
18. The term “well-being” in families pertains to all of the following except:
A. Family members’ ability to communicate about physical health
19. You decided to take a Family Communication course this semester, in part, to increase the
effectiveness of your communication with your family. With which approach to improving
family communication did you engage?
D. Therapeutic approach
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ESSAY QUESTIONS
1. Discuss the problems in the evaluation of various marriage and couple enrichment
programs. What strengths and weaknesses can you list that might predict the
effectiveness or ineffectiveness of any of these programs?
2. Pick a member of your immediate family and, through a comparison of the
alternatives presented in this chapter, describe the influence strategy/strategies that
you think would be most effective in persuading that family member to seek
medical assistance regarding a potential health risk (e.g. cancer screening) or change
a risky behavior (e.g. quit smoking).
3. Advancements in medical technology and mapping of the Human Genome Project
are making the detection and treatment of genetic illnesses increasingly effective.
What effect (if any) do you think these advancements will have on family
communication about genetic risks? Be sure to explain your reasoning and cite
relevant research to support your claims.