Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Visher, John

  • Living reference work entry
  • First Online:
Encyclopedia of Couple and Family Therapy

  • 59 Accesses

Name

John S. Visher, MD (1921–2009)

Introduction

John Visher, along with his wife Emily, was one of the pioneers of family therapy in contemporary practice due to his contributions to the field in the area of stepfamilies. Their innovative work shed light on the distinctive experiences of stepfamilies and developed best practices for clinicians when working with them. The Vishers founded the Stepfamily Association of America (SAA), authored seven books, and published many papers in professional journals (Visher 1994; Visher and Visher, 1979, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991a, b, 1996).

Career

Visher was born in Waukesha, Wisconsin, and raised in Evansville, Indiana. He received his bachelor’s degree from Indiana University at Bloomington and went on to earn his medical degree from Indiana University at Indianapolis. He served as a US Army and Air Force medical officer from 1945 to 1947 and was discharged with the rank of captain. In 1951, he completed his psychiatric training at the University...

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Pasley, K., Rhoden, L., Visher, E. B., & Visher, J. S. (1996). Successful stepfamily therapy: client’s perspectives. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 22(3), 343–357.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Visher, J. S. (1994). Stepfamilies: A work in progress. The American Journal of Family Therapy, 22(4), 337–344.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Visher, E. B., & Visher, J. S. (1979). Stepfamilies: A guide to working with stepparents and stepchildren. New York: Brunner/Mazel.

    Google Scholar 

  • Visher, E. B., & Visher, J. S. (1988). Old loyalties, new ties. New York: Brunner/Mazel.

    Google Scholar 

  • Visher, E. B., & Visher, J. S. (1989). Parenting coalitions after remarriage: Dynamics and therapeutic guidelines. Family Relations, 38(1), 65–70.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Visher, E. B., & Visher, J. S. (1990). Dynamics of successful stepfamilies. Journal of Divorce & Remarriage, 14(1), 3–12.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Visher, E. B., & Visher, J. S. (1991a). How to win as a stepfamily. New York: Brunner/Mazel Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Visher, J. S., & Visher, E. B. (1991b). Therapy with stepfamily couples. Psychiatric Annals, 21(8), 462–465.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Visher, E. B., & Visher, J. S. (1996). Therapy with stepfamilies. New York: Brunner-Mazel.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Family Institute at Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA

    Amy Wagner & Clea RM James

Authors
  1. Amy Wagner
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Clea RM James
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Clea RM James .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. The Family Institute at Northwestern, Evanston, Illinois, USA

    Jay Lebow

  2. The Family Institute at Northwestern, Evanston, Illinois, USA

    Anthony Chambers

  3. The Family Institute at Northwestern, Evanston, Illinois, USA

    Douglas C. Breunlin

Section Editor information

  1. Illinois School of Professional Psychology, Argosy University, Schaumburg, IL, USA

    Mudita Rastogi Ph.D.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2017 Springer International Publishing AG

About this entry

Cite this entry

Wagner, A., James, C.R. (2017). Visher, John. In: Lebow, J., Chambers, A., Breunlin, D. (eds) Encyclopedia of Couple and Family Therapy. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-15877-8_873-1

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-15877-8_873-1

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-15877-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-15877-8

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Behavioral Science and PsychologyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation