Chapter 12: Communication in Families

The family communication pattern of conversation orientation refers to the extent to which family members are expected to adhere to a family hierarchy.

False

During the ________ stage, a couple settles into marriage or a cohabiting relationship and works out expectations, interaction patterns, and daily routines for their shared life.​

establishing a family

Based on lecture, family members are ___________________________; the behavior of one family member affects the behavior of every other family member, both in and out of the family setting.

interdependent

All of these statements give good advice for communicating in families EXCEPT:

​Focus on the small issues and let the big ones go.

​Which statement below is true of families?

​More people are choosing to remain unmarried than ever before.

Which type of family has low conversation orientation and high conformity orientation?​

protective

Don and Makiko Smith have been married for five years. They are a highly interdependent couple, are very emotionally expressive with each other, and have conventional views of marriage and family life. The Smiths would be best categorized as which of Fitzpatrick's marital types?​

traditionals

All families follow the same seven stages of development.​

False

Based on lecture, productive communication patterns in families include restrictive rules that determine how, when, and what feelings and needs are expressed.

False

Americans have historically seen raising children as a primary objective of marriage, but it is no longer seen as the only goal of marriage.​

True

Based on lecture, all family members perform roles -- a set of prescribed behaviors.

True

Which type of family has high conversation orientation and high conformity orientation?​

consensual

Concerning the typical life cycle of families with children, the second stage is usually:

enlarging a family

During the ________ stage, the addition of children decreases the amount of couple time and changes the focus of a couple's communication.​

enlarging a family

Concerning the typical life cycle of families with children, the fifth stage is usually:​

launching children

________states that people apply economic principles to evaluate their relationships.

social exchange theory

As a rule, women assume most of the ________, which involves remembering, planning, and scheduling family life.​

​psychological responsibility

After the first few married years, most couples experience a dip in marital satisfaction:​

​regardless of whether or not they have children.

According to Braithwaite et al., which type of voluntary kin fulfills desires and needs not met by biological and legal family?​

​supplemental family

Clifford Notarius (1996) identified the following three key elements that influence satisfaction in long-term relationships:​

​words, thoughts, and emotions.