Definitions of child abuse are culturally driven. Hong Kong, with a predominantly Chinese population, has managed to eradicate much of the societal abuse that children suffer elsewhere in Asia. Professional and government attention has now shifted to child abuse and neglect within the family. The paper, based on interviews with key professionals. analysis of policy documents and practice records examines traditional Chinese parent‐child relationships. the status of parental authority and corporal punishment and changes in contemporary Hong Kong family life. It goes on to outline the development of responses to child abuse in Hong Kong, some of the dilemmas that professionals face in defining abuse and areas for future research.

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Family therapy in Britain must develop to encompass the external reality of hmily life. Living in a racist society dominates the lives ofall black families. Family therapists need to acknowledge and address this before intervening in the family system. This paperorers personal and professional experiences, confrontaion, structured exercises and general and specific principles for work with black families. Minimal and positive goals are advocated so that practitioners do not reel paralysed by the enormity ofthe task.

The work of the Center for the Study of the Family in Milan has had wide influence. We describe its influence on us--the positive connotation of many car journeys, our self-training, and changes in how we view, and function in, our personal and professional lives.

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