Current Controversies on Family Violence

The thoughtful, often heated, contributions - presented in a debate format - cover such issues as: whether prevention programmes affect rates of child sexual abuse; whether alcohol and drug use are causes of family violence; and whether child abuse is transmitted from generation to generation. The volume highlights the implications for research and policy directions in the family violence field.

Richard J. Gelles received his Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of New Hampshire.  He is the Dean of The School of Social Work at the University of Pennsylvania and holds The Joanne and Raymond Welsh Chair of Child Welfare and Family Violence in the School of Social Work at the University of Pennsylvania.  He is the Director of the Center for the Study of Youth Policy and Co-Director of the Center for Children’s Policy, Practice, and Research. His book, The Violent Home was the first systematic empirical investigation of family violence and continues to be highly influential.  He is the author or coauthor of 23 books and more than 100 articles and chapters on family violence.  His latest books are, The Book of David:  How Preserving Families Can Cost Children's Lives (Basic Books, 1996) and Intimate Violence in Families, Third Edition (Sage Publications, 1997).