Cultural Diversity and Families

Bahira Sherif Trask, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Individual and Family Studies, University of Delaware, and is a Policy Scientist in the Center for Community Research and Service. She has a Ph.D. in Cultural Anthropology from the University of Pennsylvania and an undergraduate degree in Political Science from Yale University. Her research focuses on issues of cultural diversity and the relationship between work, gender, and family life. She recently co-edited The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Women's Issues Worldwide (2003) and has published in numerous journals, including Journal of Family Issues, Qualitative Inquiry, Anthropology Today, and Journal of Teaching About Families & Marriage. In 1999, she was awarded the prestigious Sussman Groves Young Professional Research Award to support her continued research on issues of family and diversity. A frequent presenter at national and international conferences, Dr. Sherif-Trask is an acknowledged expert witness and national commentator on challenges facing American families. She serves as reviewer for several major journals, including Early Childhood Research Quarterly, Journal of Human Organization: Applied Anthropology, Fathering & Fatherhood, Journal of Family Issues, and Family Science Review. In addition to her academic activities, Dr. Sherif-Trask is a co-founder and board member of Cradle of Hope, a home for teenage pregnant girls in the Philadelphia area. Raeann R. Hamon is Professor of Family Science and Gerontology in the Department of Human Development and Family Science at Messiah College, Pennsylvania. She holds one of two Scholar Chair Awards at Messiah College. Dr. Hamon received her Ph.D. in Family and Child Development and Graduate Certificate in Gerontology from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. She has numerous publications and presentations on topics such as filial responsibility, family relationships in later life, parents' experience of adult children's divorce, intergenerational service-learning, Bahamian folklore, and Bahamian family life. She recently co-edited Mate Selection Across Cultures (Sage, 2003) and served as an associate editor for the four-volume International Encyclopedia of Marriage and Family (Macmillan Reference, 2003) and as a guest editor for a special double issue of the Journal of Teaching in Marriage and Family: Innovations in Family Science (Haworth, 2004), which was devoted to the topic of teaching about international families. A Certified Family Life Educator, she is an enthusiastic teacher of courses like Marital Relationships, Dynamics of Family Interaction, Sociology of Aging, and Foundations of Marriage and Family. She is President of the Association of Councils and a member of the Executive Board for the National Council on Family Relations, where she is also an active member of the International Section.

Preface - Bahira Sherif Trask & Raeann R. Hamon Part I: History and Trends in the Study of Culturally Diverse Families 1. Historical Trends in the Study of Diverse Families - Pearl Stewart & Katia Paz Goldfarb 2. A Nation of Diversity: Demographics of the United States of America and Their Implications for Families - Fabienne Doucet & Raeann R. Hamon 3. Theoretical and Methodological Approaches to the Study of Culturally Diverse Families - Bahira Sherif Trask & Ramona Marotz-Baden Part II: Family Life in Culturally Diverse Families 4. Gender and Class in Culturally Diverse Families - Katherine R. Allen & Ben K. Beitin 5. Trends in Marriage and Cohabitation - Bahira Sherif Trask & Julie M. Koivunen 6. Women, Work, and Families: Locating Experiences in Social Contexts - Seongeun Kim & Tara Woofolk 7. Parenting in Color: Culturally Diverse Perspectives on Parenting - Kimberly A. Greder & William D. Allen 8. Cultural Diversity and Aging Families - Rona J. Karasik & Raeann R. Hamon 9. Parent-Child Ties of Culturally Diverse Aging Families - Paula M. Usita Part III: Contextual Issues and Culturally Diverse Families 10. Human Services and Cultural Diversity: Tenuous Relationships, Challenges, and Opportunities Ahead - Donald G. Unger, Teresita Cuevas, & Tara Woolfolk 11. Family, School, and Community: Finding Green Lights at the Intersection - Judith A. Myers-Walls & Larissa V. Frias 12. Family Life Education: Implications of Cultural Diversity - Deborah B. Gentry 13. The Compelling Realities of Diversity, Policies, and Laws - Tammy L. Henderson 14. Ethical Reflections for a Globalized Family Curriculum: A Developmental Paradigm - Mary Ann Hollinger Concluding Observations - Bahira Sherif Trask & Raeann R. Hamon Index About the Editors and Contributors