This four-volume reference for high school level students and above covers current issues relative to marriage and the family. Updated to include international coverage, the entries (in general, about two-to- six pages in length) provide a cross-cultural approach to topics such as adolescent parenthood, family planning, cohabitation, widowhood, domestic violence, child abuse and neglect, codependency, and commuter marriages. Also included are articles that cover specific countries and religious traditions, exploring the history of family life within these cultures as well as how families have been affected by social and political change. Illustrated with some b&w photographs.