ABSTRACT
Section I of this volume was devoted to a discussion of the prevention of children's health and emotional problems, with an underlying theme of the development of children's health beliefs and cognitions. Although more research is needed, it is clear that families play an important role in the prevention of illness and maintenance of healthy behaviors among children, in part because families are the system in which children's cognitions and behaviors develop. Section II is devoted to a discussion of the interaction of families and illness. Within this general area, several important themes are developed regarding the role of families in health and illness and the nature of the family itself.
