A year in the life of the Canadian family Olga Herrmann lost her mother when she was 15 and has never entirely gotten over it. Her husband, Patrick, never had a real dad. The Herrmanns may seem to have a magical quality, but they are not unique. In fact, there is something of them in many strong families. Tolstoy was right, researchers say.
All happy families are alike.
John DeFrain, a family therapist at the University of Nebraska, has studied happy families for 30 years in Africa, Asia, Europe, North America and Australia. Happiness is Prof. DeFrain's obsession. Instead of looking at why families fail, he focuses on how they succeed. He and his co-researcher, Nick Stinnett, have found six key attributes of happy families around the world. The foundation of family happiness.