Family Education in Mental Illness

It is now generally accepted that families need a firm knowledge base and a wide range of skills in order to cope effectively with a seriously mentally ill family member. Recognition of this need has led us to think of education as the preferred modality of help to families. This important volume is the first to bring basic principles of education together with knowledge about mental illness to help professionals become effective family educators. With considerable focus on the experience of mental illness from both the families' and patients' perspectives, Dr. Hatfield effectively outlines the essential elements for creating curricula in family education: the social context for present approaches; the desired content, or the "what," of family education; and the technique, or "how," of education.This volume will be of interest to all professionals in the field of mental illness who want to increase their skills in working with families. It could also be used as a textbook for training students of social work, psychiatry, psychiatric nursing, psychology, etc. to work with families.