Family routines and rituals--the importance of family functioning: comment on the special section.

This diverse collection of papers highlights routines and rituals in family life. Just as individual family members bring unique styles and perspectives to the family table, to be incorporated into a family framework, so do each of these papers present rich and varied research questions, designs, and measurement strategies that enrich our understanding of family routine behavior patterns and ritual meanings. This series adds to our conceptualization of family routines and rituals within a systems perspective highlighting: 1) families are comprised of multiple levels that operate individually; interact with each other; and as a whole, reveal properties distinct from separate parts; 2) families tend toward stability in meaningful patterns of functioning; and 3) family functioning has meaning for individual outcomes.