Violence in the Home: Interdisciplinary Perspectives

This is an informative book written by a multidisciplinary group of professionals who are experts in their fields on family violence. It was "designed primarily for mental health service providers who need to know about research findings on family violence as well as about exemplary clinical and community interventions." The book fulfills its function in an admirable manner. The first part of the book gives an overview of violence in American society. The chapter entitled "Violence in the Society" is superior, as it fairly covers cultural and subcultural issues related to violence (eg, the alleged Southern subculture of violence, the alleged subculture of poverty, and the masculine subculture). The media as a source of violence and social controls and procedures designed to reduce violence are also well discussed. Another well-done chapter illuminates the extent of family violence and lists five characteristics of families experiencing this scourge. Part 2 focuses on