Larry L. Constantine

Counseling Implications of Comarital and Multilateral Relations.

Counselors may expect an increasing number of marriages to include open intimate involvement with others either as an adjunct to the marriage or as an integral part of it. Some elements of these marital styles are extensions of the more conventional dyadic relationship but.others appear to be relatively unique or to require a new focus. Key problem areas are noted and application to counseling situations is made.

Dysfunction and Failure in Open Family Systems, I: Application of a Unified Theory.

Open family systems are frequently modeled as inherently functional or healthy; however, systematic research and theoretical consideration of potentially dysfunctional patterns is lacking. Using an expanded, integrating theory to bridge gaps among other models, a composite profile of failure and dysfunction in open family systems can be constructed. Thus, failed open families are characterized by excessive and chaotic interaction, prolonged conflict, and ambiguity, tending to overtax individual resources, eventually leading to collapse and separation. Somatic symptoms of stress in children may grow out of accelerated independence combined with parental overinvolvement. The combined features of failed open families are readily understood within the integrating framework.