ABSTRACT
This chapter describes and evaluates recent changing views of the family, with particular reference to families with mentally handicapped children. The most comprehensive and meaningful view of families is one which acknowledges the competence of families, recognizing that many cope with and adapt to the stresses they experience. Such a view, in seeking to explain why families are so different, emphasizes the complexity of the family. The family is a system in which all the elements interact with and influence all other elements. The marital relationship was examined in three ways during the course of the interview. Firstly, mothers were asked about the process of decision making with regard to the child with Down’s Syndrome. Secondly, authors explored how household and child care tasks were shared and mothers’ satisfaction with these arrangements. Thirdly, they asked directly about the impact of the child on the marital relationship.
