What Children Learn from Their Parents' Marriage: It May Be Your Marriage, but It's Your Child's Blueprint for Intimacy

by Judith P. Siegel

How are your children learning about intimacy? What are they seeing when they watch you interacting with your spouse?  In a ground breaking approach to family dynamics, What Children Learn from Their Parents' Marriage shows how a child's perception of the marriage his or her parents have created is the key to his or her psychological development and ultimate well-being.

Talking to both intact families and divorcing couples with children, marriage and family therapist Judith P. Sigel identifies seven essential elements of marriage that determine the emotional health of a child.

By combining her own work with the most current research, Dr. Siegal presents an eye-opening and highly readable book -- one that offers illuminating insight for parents everywhere who wish to build the secure foundation their children need for an emotionally healthy future.

Genres: Parenting, Psychology, Self Help, Nonfiction

258 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 1, 2000

About the author

Judith P. Siegel, Ph.D., L.C.S.W., is a professor and a marriage and family therapist in private practice. A recognized expert in her field, she is the author of several academic books and numerous articles on marital dynamics and marriage therapy. She has also published extensively in the field of family therapy and has presented throughout the United States. Additionally, she has appeared on the Today Show and Good Morning America.

Reviews

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very helpful in understanding relationships.

I gave his book 4 stars instead of 5 because the first part was more like reading a term paper than a book, and seemed to be a report on defining elements of relationships, rather than the emotions and nitty-gritty actions and reactions between partners. But when the author began describing real cases of marriage counseling, and the effects of marital conflict on the children of these marriages, she fulfilled my expectations of this book when I purchased it. All in all, a very worthwhile read.

[Lily P. · Rating 3 out of 5]

(Kindle)
3-4 stars

If this was the first book I'd read about parenting psychology it might have been a full 4 stars,

[Rebekah · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was alright. Like most of these self-help/pop-psychology books, you can pretty much just read the chapter headings and get everything you'd get by reading the whole thing.

A problem with working at a library is that all day I see these types of books and think "oh that's pertinent to my life right now, and even if I only read it in the bathroom I'll be done in two days," but then I never end up having time for real books.

Today I am swearing off anything outside of the 800s. For an indeterminate amount of time. Except maybe 641s.

[gabriela · Rating 5 out of 5]

jokes on you mis papás nunca se casaron

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every marriage with kids involved should read this

The information in this book was so right on point. So many good topics like how we talk to our partner, put our marriage last, hold back conflict are all ways that ARE blueprints for how our children will handle those same things. We can change the legacy of a bad marriage from our parents to a better one for ourselves, which in turn means a superb one for our children. They are watching our interactions with our partner, therefore setting the foundation for their own marriage. A definite good read.

[Inti · Rating 2 out of 5]

Reading a Spanish translation