Families and family psychology at the millennium - Intersecting crossroads

This introduction to the International Perspectives section presents a global overview of various issues and trends that families and family psychologists confront at the beginning of the 21st century. These are presented in broad strokes so that a kaleidoscopic intermingling of pieces emerges. Some predictions are included about new and expanding directions the field of family psychology is likely to take in coming decades. The need for additional research to field test criteria sets for emerging relational diagnosis and to evaluate which are the most efficacious therapeutic interventions is highlighted (F. W. Kaslow, 1987, 1995b). This section also includes 3 other articles on various aspects of family psychology by leading psychologists from 3 diverse countries and continents-the Virgin Islands (R. Dudley-Grant, 2001), Israel (E. Halpern, 2001), and Japan (K. Kameguchi, 2001). Each is representative of the larger region in which each author teaches and practices. These articles are intended to present a collage of some of the problems families are experiencing, future trends, and a call to action for psychologists to intervene to prevent and ameliorate family distress. Each author describes the history and current status of family psychology in his or her country and relates key dilemmas to what is happening on the world scene.