Marriage Guidance Council Research Articles

Desperate Housewives, Neuroses and the Domestic Environment, 1945–1970 by Ali Haggett (review)

Reviewed by: Desperate Housewives, Neuroses and the Domestic Environment, 1945–1970by Ali Haggett Rachel Ritchie Ali Haggett. Desperate Housewives, Neuroses and the Domestic Environment, 1945–1970. Studies for the Society for the Social History of Medicine. London: Pickering & Chatto, 2012. ix + 239 pp. Ill. £60 (978-1-84893-310-1). Despite the title, at no point in Desperate Housewives, Neuroses and the Domestic Environment, 1945–1970does Ali Haggett refer to the internationally popular television show with which her book shares its name. This surprised me. I expected at least some acknowledgment of the program, especially because it illustrates the extent to which the stereotype of neurotic homemaker, the desperate housewife, is entrenched in the public imagination on both sides of the Atlantic. This absence seems all the more surprising as the author discusses modern-day movie depictions of conventional family life in the U.S. suburbs as part of her concluding remarks, but still makes no mention of the television namesake. This seeming oversight is, however, the greatest criticism that I can level at this meticulously researched book. The six chapters bring together and make connections between a broad range of sources. “Reflections on the Desperate Housewife” outlines existing debates about gender, domesticity, and feminism, including images within popular culture and literature. The second chapter investigates understandings of marriage and motherhood in the years after 1945, specifically in postwar Britain. Haggett revisits some well-known examples such as the work of Bowlby and Spock but also introduces case studies that readers may be less familiar with, such as the writings of National Marriage Guidance Council. This is followed by personal accounts of housewifery and mothering in the third chapter, with the interviews conducted by Haggett providing both the evidence and main focus. Chapter 4 draws upon very different material, situating “desperate housewives” in medical, psychiatric, and psychological debates of the time. Chapter 5 returns to the oral history interviews, considering participants’ recollections of anxiety and depression alongside other contemporary accounts including examples from women’s magazines. The final chapter examines gendered imagery within pharmaceutical promotions and advertising, challenging widely held assumptions about women and medication by comparing advertising across different genres of publication. [End Page 151] Haggett analyzes all of the areas covered with clarity and precision. This is particularly apparent in sections about the specialized medical debates that are central to the book. For example, she writes confidently about the pharmacological aspects of the topic, such as the different types of medication prescribed, but in a way that is clear to the nonspecialist reader. Indeed, Desperate Housewiveswill be of interest to scholars outside of medical history. For instance, it makes an interesting contribution to social and cultural histories of postwar Britain. Like other recent publications such as Sean Nixon’s Hard Sell: Advertising, Affluence and Transatlantic Relations, c. 1951–69, 1the book explores the influence of the United States while revealing distinct national differences. Haggett also aptly demonstrates the long shadow that the Second World War cast over British society, arguing that the psychological impact of war shaped life choices and attitudes for years to come. Desperate Housewivesadds to understandings about women’s lives in the mid- to late twentieth century too. The oral history interviews play an important role in this. They are a particular strength of the book, with the women’s voices articulating a range of viewpoints and emotions, including humor (p. 61) and a moving account of maternal pride (p. 123). These testimonies provide the backbone to one of Haggett’s main arguments, namely that interpersonal relationships rather than domesticity and motherhood were a major source of psychological distress. She also uses evidence from the interviews to discuss big issues and small ones, from changes over the course of a lifecycle (p. 73) to the multiple factors affecting how much a husband helped with housework (pp. 62–63). The latter is one of numerous passages where the role of men features. Over the course of the book, men’s lived experiences emerge as an important theme, both as a complement to women’s and in their own right. This provides an interesting additional angle to debates about neuroses and the...

'To Try and Find Out What is being Done to Whom, by Whom and with What Results': The Creation of Psychosexual Counselling Policy in England, 1972-1979

Although neglected in recent sexual health policy, psychosexual services were briefly during the 1970s the focus of a reluctant policy initiative by the Department of Health and Social Security. In part, a response to the (ultimately short-lived) optimism generated by the emergence of sex therapy, this policy initiative was also precipitated by the transfer of the Family Planning Association (FPA)'s clinical services into the National Health Service. The Department's policy on psychosexual counselling--a combination of information-gathering and the funding of experimental training schemes--enabled it to avoid making any commitment to the expansion of psychosexual services until responsibility for such decisions could be delegated downwards to a newly created local administrative level of the health service. It also helped to maintain a 'mixed economy' of providers of psychosexual services drawn from the statutory and non-statutory sectors, albeit with the National Marriage Guidance Council supplanting the role of the FPA in the voluntary sector. Analysis of this policy reveals how, at a time of rising social expectations about the treatment of sexual problems, the Department successfully averted any significant incursion of sexology and innovative psychological therapies into the health service.

A History of Marriage Guidance in New Zealand.

The article focuses on the involvement of the late counsellor Esther Hall with the Marriage Guidance Council (MGC) in New Zealand. In 1962, Hall started working for MGC which focused around social contact and community involvement. It cites the move of MGC to consider training non-medical and non-professional people. Tutors of MGC started to do more community work, such as pre-marriage courses.

Criticism From Within An Interview With Kerrie James

Kerrie James is the Clinical Director at Relationships Australia (NSW). Having trained in family therapy in Canada in 1979, Kerrie came back to Australia and was employed by Relationships Australia (NSW), then the Marriage Guidance Council, to develop one of the first professional training programs in family therapy. Since then Kerrie has taught and supervised in family therapy both in Australia and overseas. Through her publications and presentations, Kerrie has made a significant contribution to the feminist debate within family therapy. Kerrie is currently completing a Masters in Womens Studies in which she is researching connections between the social constructions of gender and violence.

Gendering Organizational Change: The Case of Relate, 1948-1990

In this paper we argue for the need to develop a gendered understanding of processes of organizational change. However, this should not simply be seen as a question of the proportions of women and men at different levels in the hierarchy. Organizational culture and the gendered metaphors and rhetorics that are used within the organization are also shown to be significant. Our analysis focuses upon a single case, a historical and sociological study of Relate, formerly the National Marriage Guidance Council. This case is especially interesting in that issues of gender inevitably enter into its primary task, the treatment of matital difficulties, and that as a voluntary organization it has employed a high proportion of unpaid women in the key activity of counseling, while the managerial positions have been dominated by men. This organization experienced a period of crisis in the 1980s culminating in the commissioning of a report from a firm of management consultants. We argue that the analysis of organizational difficulties at this time was considerably weakened by the failure to develop an understanding of complex issues of gender.

Issues in the organisation of counselling: Learning from NMGC

Abstract Relatively little attention has been paid in the literature to organisational factors that influence the effectiveness of counselling. The history of the National Marriage Guidance Council (NMGC) is used as a case-study to illustrate some of the basic organisational dilemmas and conflicts experienced in counselling agencies. Three areas of organisational dynamics are discussed: the social and cultural environment of the agency, organisational structure and ideology, and the life-span of the organisation. The implications of these factors for work with clients are explored.

Issues in the organisation of counselling: learning from NMGC

Abstract Relatively little attention has been paid in the literature to organisational factors that influence the effectiveness of counselling. The history of the National Marriage Guidance Council (NMGC) is used as a case-study to illustrate some of the basic organisational dilemmas and conflicts experienced in counselling agencies. Three areas of organisational dynamics are discussed: the social and cultural environment of the agency, organisational structure and ideology, and the life-span of the organisation. The implications of these factors for work with clients are explored.

Marriage Guidance Counselling: Ii. What Counsellors Want to Give

Abstract Seventy-six counsellors practising under the auspices of the Scottish Marriage Guidance Council responded anonymously to a postal questionnaire. This was designed to survey their attitudes regarding various aspects of counselling and, by means of case-studies, to in vestigate the extent to which they adopted a uniform approach with all clients. The counsellors considered marriage guidance to be appropriate for a wide range of problems. In general, ‘nonspecific’ factors were considered helpful. However, in line with current trends towards flexibility and eclecticism, the counsellors considered that some interventions, styles and approaches were more appropriate for some problems than for others. The implications of the findings are discussed and some practical recommendations are made.

INTERPERSONAL SKILLS AT GREENE KING

This is an account of a training course consisting of six three‐hourly sessions held in 1989. Sixteen attended the course, all supervisors from a variety of disciplines. The majority were over 40 years old and with more than 15 years service with the company. Greene King Employee Relations Adviser, Rod McAlpine, and Training and Safety Manager, Peter Jackson, felt the need to develop a more formalised training programme at supervisory level and a first series in interpersonal skills was thought to be appropriate. At the same time Relate, formerly the Marriage Guidance Council, was extending its educational and training areas in the Eastern region. Greene King took advantage of this to use them in the organising, actioning and planning of the course. The article consists of two sections, the first written by Rod McAlpine and Peter Jackson giving background details of the company and its training requirements. The second is the work of Mary Pennock, Relate Training Organiser in West Suffolk. In it she recounts how Relate approached what is a logical but comparatively recent extension of their activities. It also covers the details of the course which was designed and packaged for Greene King, bearing in mind the background of those taking part and the particular needs of the company.

Marriage guidance counselling in general practice in London

Abstract People with marital difficulties are more likely to contact their GP for help than any other social service. In recent years, a number of attachments of marriage guidance counsellors to general practice have been set up to encourage doctors to refer patients directly. This paper describes the results of a postal survey of general practitioners and counsellors in attachments in the area covered by the London Marriage Guidance Council. While the results were very positive, with few disadvantages mentioned, it must be remembered that the majority of GPs involved were a highly self-selected and atypical group, usually with a special interest in psychotherapy.

Marriage guidance counselling in general practice in London

Abstract People with marital difficulties are more likely to contact their GP for help than any other social service. In recent years, a number of attachments of marriage guidance counsellors to general practice have been set up to encourage doctors to refer patients directly. This paper describes the results of a postal survey of general practitioners and counsellors in attachments in the area covered by the London Marriage Guidance Council. While the results were very positive, with few disadvantages mentioned, it must be remembered that the majority of GPs involved were a highly self-selected and atypical group, usually with a special interest in psychotherapy.

Book Reviews : Marriage Guidance Counsellors in the Medical Setting by Marianne de Groot. Published by National Marriage Guidance Council, 1985. Price: £1.50. Paper cover. Pp 31. ISBN: 0 85351 071 7

Book Reviews : Marriage Guidance Counsellors in the Medical Setting by Marianne de Groot. Published by National Marriage Guidance Council, 1985. Price: £1.50. Paper cover. Pp 31. ISBN: 0 85351 071 7

Marriage Guidance Counselling

The Marriage Guidance Council sets out. as the first of its objectives states: To provide a confidential counselling service for people who have difficulties or anxieties in their marriages or in other personal relationships. It offers other services too: education for young people, setting up training courses and conferences, and publishing and distributing literature. But the counselling of individuals and couples is the main activity of the Council and the one for which it is generally known.

Counselling in Medical Settings

Abstract The slow development of counselling as an alternative to traditional treatment within the medical model is described. Counselling in medical settings has its roots in the work of the Marriage Guidance Council and the influence of Balint towards psychotherapy. 10–30% of all consultations in general practitioners' surgeries are related to emotional distress, yet the adoption and rise of counselling is more patchy than widespread. The factors which have hindered its expansion in the past are discussed, and it is concluded that its development in the future will depend largely upon pronounced changes in public health policy.

Breaking the Chains of Gender: Family Therapy's Position?†

Australian Journal of Family TherapyVolume 5, Issue 4 p. 241-248 Breaking the Chains of Gender: Family Therapy's Position?† Kerrie James, Kerrie James Family Counselling and Training Programme; Marriage Guidance Council of N.S.W., 226 Liverpool Road, Enfield. N.S.W.Search for more papers by this author Kerrie James, Kerrie James Family Counselling and Training Programme; Marriage Guidance Council of N.S.W., 226 Liverpool Road, Enfield. N.S.W.Search for more papers by this author First published: October 1984 https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1467-8438.1884.tb00099.xCitations: 12 † This paper was presented at a Plenary Session of the Fifth Australian Family Therapy Conference, Canberra 1984. AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Citing Literature Volume5, Issue4October 1984Pages 241-248 RelatedInformation

Second Time Around: A Preventive Intervention for Remarried Couples

SynopsisRecent research has shown that in Australia divorce rates for second marriages are higher than those for first marriages. Second marriage families have been identified as a high risk group which lack effective role models and societal norms. The Marriage Guidance Council of New South Wales introduced a pilot group program to help these couples deal with some of the issues they face in second marriages. At the conclusion of the group, all members stated that their relationships had improved since joining the program and 75% reported that the group had helped them cope better with parenting. All members said they would recommend the program to others. This program is an important intervention in the prevention of second marriage breakdown.

Marriage guidance counselling in general practice

Marital disharmony is a common social problem which general practitioners meet in various guises. Although some GPs are active counsellors, the best known form of counselling in the community is that provided by the Marriage Guidance Council. In 1977 The Marriage Guidance Council traced 50 schemes where counsellors worked from doctor’s surgeries or from Health Centres.1

The one-interview client

Abstract A census of National Marriage Guidance Council cases showed that a third of them lasted for one interview only. This finding was met with some surprise by the counsellors. An investigation into one-interview cases was therefore undertaken, with the result that several distinct categories were identified. In some cases one interview seems to be all that is needed by the client.

National Marriage Guidance Council

National Marriage Guidance Council

Communication in counselling marital problems: A survey

This paper collates responses to a questionnaire sent out to marriage guidance counsellors associated with the Scottish Marriage Guidance Council. The results are analyzed in terms of the counsellors' years of service, and, where possible, the paper makes reference to a similar survey conducted with general practitioners. Its scope includes communication problems with clients, based both on client types and on conveying information (e.g., patient referral) to clients, counselling situations found most difficult by counsellors, and problems experienced in interviewing. The final sections deal with training methods, their effectiveness and limitations as seen by the counsellors.