This study examines the impact of widowhood among the elderly in terms of their perception and reaction. Among 184 subjects, over 70% said that the experience of losing a spouse was a great shock. At least one of the psychosomatic reaction (insomnia, exhausion and anorexia etc.) was reported by over 80% respondents. At the psychological reaction level, four criteria (1) grief and depression, (2) decreased activity and thinking, (3) anxiety and passive behaviors and (4) attachment were examined. About half of the respondents reported at least one item and (2) and (3) were found to be typical reactions widely seen among these elderly. Although there was a significant correlation between the perception of widowhood and psychological reaction by elderly, the degree of correlation was not relatively high in this study.

　"Family violence" (Kateinai booryoku) is the term used in Japan to refer to cases where a child abuses a parent, usually a mother. Previous researchers and clinicians have related several factors to abuse in families.

　The focus of this paper is primarily on changing process of a family system where all abused family members had run away from their home with the progress of family therapy, although other variables particularly individual aspects of each family members. Main characteristic of this case is to be said that the family resolved their difficult problems by their own effort to change the system with the facilitation of a therapist. It was discussed that positive connotation to the absence of IP from therapy sessions had great therapeutic effectiveness.

　This paper describes that the work of a therapist team that came out from behind the one-way mirror. A debate among the team is enacted before the family as a strategy for change. The case of a family that is dependent on the therapist team and handicaps the therapists illustrates an application of this method. The advantages and some of the problems of applying this approach are discussed.

　In the studies of the families of depression and schizophrenia, we found the father=patient makes the atmosphere of the family.

　Both of these families show the immature formation of the "self" of the members of the family and they can not throw out (Entwerfen) themselves into their family without anxiety.

　This indicates that these families do not create the family "field" in which the members of the family learn the basis of the human relationship, especially the consistency of the human being.

　This immature learning about the consistency of the human being is suspected to be found in the normal contemporary Japanese families and it is suggested that the reconstruction of the family field is urgent necessity to solve the identity crisis problem found among Japanese youth.

　I view school refusal problems from a systemic perspective and assist families by utilizing school consultation and family therapy approaches.

　It has been noted that school refusal problems stem at the point where the two systems, the school and family, meet. Thus the approach should not be in chosing between one or the other system, but to take the perspective of seeing the system as including both the school and the family.

　The paper describes the following approaches which were utilized in working with five male high school refusal cases:

　a. intervening in the family system by utilizing family therapy

　b. considering parents as co-therapists and providing parenting skills at a Parents' Group

　c. intervening by utilizing school consultations

　The results of the three approaches were reported and the importance of intervening in both systems were emphasized. Furthermore, different problems and issues in each type of interventions were discussed.