What Are Family Rituals?
Family rituals range from the ceremonial (e.g., religious celebrations, birthday and anniversary commemorations) to the mundane patterns of daily life (e.g., eating dinner as a family, Tuesday visits with grandparents). Two important dimensions used to assess family rituals are: the extent to which these routines are integrated into family life and the degree to which they are meaningful to family members. “The routine aspect of family practices includes the regularity of an activity, who is responsible for planning and carrying out the activity, and what roles are assigned. The meaning aspect of a family ritual includes expectations for attendance, expressed affect, symbolic significance of the activity, and commitment to continue the activity into the future” (p. 472) [Italics added]. Is Routine or Meaning Associated with Anxiety Reduction? Markson and Fiese recruited two groups of families: 43 in which a child had asthma, and 43 in which there was a peer to the child who did not hav
