ABSTRACT
Families are embedded in a range of other systems and are in fact subsystems of much larger social groupings/networks. It is evident that families bene®t from the social support they receive from these networks that they construct around themselves. When a family faces problems it draws on this network to help deal with dif®culties. In the case of a crisis, the family system not only draws from sources of support that it already has, but will seek additional forms of support. This network may help a family in a number of ways, by providing emotional support (knowing someone cares about your trouble), esteem support (knowing someone values your attempts) and information support (giving ideas that may help).
