Steinglass, Peter : Ackerman Institute for Family Therapy.
Peter Steinglass is director of the Ackerman Institute for Family Therapy.
Bennett, Linda A. : Memphis State University
Linda A. Bennett is associate professor of anthropology, Memphis State University.
Wolin, Stephen J. : George Washington School of Medicine
Stephen J. Wolin is clinical professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, George Washington School of Medicine.
Reiss, David : George Washington University School of Medicine
David Reiss is professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, George Washington University School of Medicine.
Review
"This fascinating volume reads like a detective story: the centerpiece event, alcoholism, is treated as
a mystery, a new terrain to be mapped. The writing is fresh and good, the thinking original and sound, the clinical
examples exciting and persuasive. Readers will be energized and encouraged by this book."
--Donald A. Bloch, M.D., former director, Ackerman Institute for Family Therapy
"Exceptionally lucid � superbly blends research findings with clinical applications. Recommended without qualification
to researchers and clinicians concerned with alcoholism. A landmark contribution."
--American Journal of Psychiatry
"A tour de force.� The authors take our understanding of alcohol's impact on the family to an entirely new
level.� The study of alcoholic families has come of age."
--Timmen L. Cermak, M.D., National Association for Children of Alcoholics
"We are greatly indebted to Steinglass and his collaborators for their sophisticated and monumental contribution
to the field of substance abuse."
--Contemporary Psychology
Perseus Books Group Web Site, April, 2002
Summary
This pathbreaking book paints a radical new picture of alcoholism, offering powerful evidence that most chronic
alcoholics live out their lives in intact, relatively quiet family environments. The authors show, however, that
living in an alcoholic family�in which alcoholism is the central theme around which family life is organized�has
profound effects on family members both drinkers and nondrinkers.
Table of Contents
A Family Systems Approach To Alcoholism
Setting the Stage: The Core Issues
Prevalence and Diagnosis: The Family Perspective
The Life History Model Of The Alcoholic Family
Regulating Behavior in the Alcoholic Family
Growth and Development in the Alcoholic Family
The Early Phase Of Development
Developing an Alcoholic Family Identity
The Middle Phase Of Development
The Sobriety-Intoxication Cycle: Family Problem-Solving and Alcoholic Behavior
Daily Routines as Regulators of Home Life
Alcoholism and Family Ritual Disruption
Late-Phase Options for the Alcoholic Family
The Intergenerational Transmission of Alcoholism
