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The Military Family Research Institute was founded in 2000 through a cooperative agreement with the Office of Military Community and Family Policy in the Department of Defense. This organization is one of the leading organizations in the nation with the mission of conducting research regarding military families. As stated in the website the overall goal of this organization is to conduct research on the connection between quality of life for families and outcomes of interest to the military: job satisfaction, performance and retention. The overall intended audience is directed towards those individuals who are a part of the military and the families that are connected to the military as well. This organization directs five strategic goals to help support military related individuals by supporting the military infrastructure that sustains families, growing the capacity of communities to assist military families, generating new knowledge about the experiences of military families, influencing the policies, programs and practices supporting military families and creating and sustaining a vibrant learning organization. The Military Family Research Institute offers enough information on their website to proof their validity as a credible source. Information regarding their contact information, funding information and links to their national involvement throughout the country are present in their website and can be found publicly as well. Video links to military based work and events are present within this website. Military life can be biased by our government to showcase our proudest moments and hide moments that can hinder national moral. Information shown in this website I believe is not biased based on the fact that this organization is trying to provide relief to those who have to struggle with the hardship involved with the military. The .edu also states a link to Purdue, and educational institutions especially the University of Purdue has the reputation o

Hi Luke, I agree with the websites approach to community involvment. Quite a few of my friends are in the military and I dont see as much community support at the enlisted ranks. Although there seems to be plenty of support at the officer ranks, I would like to see non-military communities take on a greater role assisting military families...if only their employers might permit it.

The Military Family Research Institute at Purdue University researches military families for military families. Founded in 2000 by the Office of military Community and the Family Policy in the Dept of Defense. In 2007 MFRI received funding from a Lilliy Endowment grant, the organizations has grown to include the "development and delivery of outreach activities for the military" they also work with civilian organizations that support military families. The MFRI is guided by the belief that researchers and practitioners should work in together to improve outcomes. The web site is primarily directed towards military leadership and civilian professionals who work with military personnel and of course to the military personnel themselves. There are resources available on the site but the raw research data is not presented. A great deal of resource is spent on how families cope with extended and or repeated deployments that separate families for extended time periods. Credibility is aided by the easily recognizable and highly respected partners and grant providers such as the Lilly Endowment, the Dept. of Defense, Zero To Three and the Sesame Workshop. There seems to be no built in bias other than that of being military centric which is plainly stated and there are no advertisements found on the site other than those that support their mission statement. I learned that whatever problems civilians have with work-family, military personnel have those same issues and added to that they must find ways to cope with being away from their children for extended time periods. Worse yet is the idea that being a single parent is not an justification for not being deployed so in the worst case you may have your children looked after by strangers for up to six months at a time, at which time you may have only two weeks leave to spend with your children before being shipped out again. One can only imagine the types of recurrent support that would be required over a career.

Terry - It is definately a priority in my family to support the military and their families. I really enjoyed your review and this site. This site provides a huge number of resources for military service persons and their family and that is the focus of the site. There is a tiny fund raising spot, way down at the bottom of the main page, where you can donate funds. This says alot about the site, they are interested in helping those in need and provide lots of resource links. Supported by Purdue University gives it a lot of presence and hopefully funding for the programs.

I think that's a great asset for many military families as they struggle with the challenge of deployments. It's difficult enough to pay bills and raise a family but with one spouse having to serve remotely for an extended period of time they take on many more issues than the average family. I hope that our government continues to support families with this need to ensure those that do deploy are comfortable that their family is being assisted.

When work works "When Work Works is a nationwide initiative to bring research on workplace effectiveness and flexibility into community and business practice. It is a project of Families and Work Institute in partnership with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Institute for a Competitive Workforce and the Twiga Foundation, with funding from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation It seams that the site is very user friendly and is intended for the general public. It is a site that provides links to information on topics concerning workplace effectiveness and workplace flexibility. There is no certain level of knowledge assumed. When Work Works has grown from eight community partners in 2005, to having locations today that span the country that covers nearly one third of the total U.S. population. Families and Work Institute's National Study of Employers (NSE) is the most comprehensive and far-reaching study of the practices, policies, programs and benefits provided by U.S employers to address the changing needs of today's workforce and workplace. Conducted in 1998, 2005 and most recently in 2008, the NSE provides trend data on changes that have occurred over the past ten years. Any group can give itself an official sounding name or logo. What beyond surface credibility gives you clues about the reliability of the site and its information? I am not really sure. I know there was a lot of links to very interesting articles. Is the sponsoring organization involved in research and/or does it provide supporting documentation to back up its points? The whole organization is involved in research as a group. Does the site have built in bias? For example is the Web page an advertisement for a product or service? No, there were actually no advertisements. Does it have a particular political or social agenda? (Please see table 1 following these instructions for websites you can refer to about evaluating the credibility of web page sources.) Ther

The Project on Global Working Families (PGWF) is a research unit at Harvard School of Public Health. It was founded by Dr. Jody Heymann & co-directed by Dr. Alison Earle. They have developed a Work, Family, & Equity Index of government performance, around the world, to systematically define & measure the success of public policies on working families relative to that index. Research on demographic changes & policy initiatives is currently being performed throughout 150 countries. The information provided on this site requires a certain level of prior knowledge. The reading itself was fairly simple, but the graphs required more attention to comprehend. This leads me to believe that the site is designed for an audience that is familiar with the intricacies of the issue such as educators, public health students & professionals, & policy makers. The site's credibility relies on the reputation of Harvard University & a successful author & scholar (Jody Heymann is the author of The Widening Gap). The information is the same that we have been studying in this class, but with a global perspective. Statistics, analysis, interviews, case studies, & the public policy index are all available on the website for review. The purpose to understand & change the things that offer work-life balance to support family health gives additional credibility to the site; and since it is not a business trying to sell a service, it makes it slightly more trustworthy. The boundaries between work, family, & community are becoming more & more blurred. These areas of our life are so interconnected that any decision or incident, in one area, impacts all three. This website gives us a glance at the global condition surrounding the topic(s). It was interesting to recognize that the US is not the only country to suffer from the stresses of the work/family imbalance; it also gives a humbling image of the daunting task that confronts us. It is not a simple issue of fighting only for policy changes; it

Website Overview: This is a company website for an organization that offers consultation to employers who wish to provide a "healthier, flexible, effective, and supportive workplace." The site offers organizations insights into assessing staff and how to improve engagement and motivation. WFC utilizes online and Telework training e-courses to implement best practices and to share information and research related to transforming company cultures. Relationship to work, family, community class: Recognizing the need for change is important for any decision maker in any organization. Acting on that recognition may, perhaps, be just as important. This website sells that action in the form of changes to work practices, leave policy, time-saving assistance, in addition to better management of existing services already offered by the organization. The website briefly describes work-life as the "interaction between employers and employees, because everything that happens at work has an impact on workers' lives." It's not that I don't believe they are a credible resource in turning around a drowning corporate culture, it's that I generally don't believe anyone or thing that can't give me some example to support their cause. The site promotes its cause with scientific and academic research, but cost $29.99. So, I moved on. Next stop, case studies. I clicked on the "Business Case for Work-Life." In one of a handful of actual statistics, WFC cites a SHRM report that "work-life balance and flexibility were winners when recruiting skills, compensation came second." An agreeable statistic no doubt, unfortunately, this is the entire scope of this business case. No particular reference to a success of the company on implementing such a balance in any organization. However, respectable organizations such as Xcel Energy, Cedars Sinai Medical Center, and decision makers of a few other companies offer words of appreciation The President of StressStop.com

I agree with you in that paying for this information is probably not our best option. It seems to be a good site with credible information. The company I work for does a lot of in-house training for managers and executives in order to provide better working environments to our employees so I think it would be interesting to read into some of their strategies.

The Council on Contemporary Families is a non-profit organization that provides the most recent research and studies about American families. They cover why families are changing, how these families are changing, and the different challenges they are facing everyday. The audience that can be members of this site seems to be strictly professionals, such as family therapists, doctors, or historians. However most of the articles are available to the public to view. The site states that there are forums that are open to the public, and also a weekly newsletter for the public. The site seems to be very credible. I am not familiar with this site or it's creators, but the .org lets me rest easier about its credibility. The directors are also professionals with degrees from prestigious schools such as University of Illinois and Berkeley. Because the members are strictly professionals, the articles are written and critiqued by these professionals that know their subjects, rather than the public hashing out their feeling about topics without knowing the facts. There does not seem to be any item or product that this group is advertising besides their work. There is an option to donate to the organization for the funding for their conferences. The site does not seem to have any certain bias. From this site I learned that professionals will sometimes use words and phrases that the public does not understand which makes sites like these somewhat trying to read. However, these professionals are full of knowledge of these subjects and are giving us facts learned from hours of study, work, and research, and we must respect that. It is sometimes easier to understand different ideas and points of view then they are coming from a professional, rather than an upset parent because you aren't feeling that bias.

Hi Brooke, very interesting read. I was particularly interested in Coontz' article on "Benefits of marriage elude needy." I was disappointed at her recommendation that lower income individuals should consider marrying more on the grounds of economic cooperation rather than on finding a "soul mate." It seems to be putting the cart before the horse. I cant remember which reading it came from this semester, but, I believe that finding an individual that can help someone make their best decisions resulting in situations such as financial stability is, in fact, part of what defines a soul mate.

The MIT Workplace Center collects baseline date from these sectors such as demographics and work-family policies and practices. The second prong to their approach is to work collaboratively with the organization at all levels to create alternative structures, work redesign, and other appropriate initiatives. The intended audience is scholars and decision makers who recognize an all encompassing approach to dealing with work-family balance. Although the site is accessible and easily read by the layman. There is a variety of evidence that supports the credibility of this site and its information. Not only does this project consider that policies need to be amended, but it goes so far as to intervene and suggest, in addition to policy changes, that organizational structure may need to change and that work processes be updated. I was quite impressed with the information provided, interviews, impacts on employees, down to the approach of specific work restructure. Ann Bookman, with whom we are familiar from readings in our class, is Executive Director of this program and give it credibility with her positions in the Clinton Administration, publications, and involvement in family and medical leave issues. This organization originates from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. It gathers information from a number of sources such as post secondary institutions and its own studies. What I find interesting is that the focus in not on the statistics, but on the hands on approach that the organization takes. It doesn't hide behind theory development or ideology, they are part of the organizations that they study. They gather information, advise on implementation, and track results. At last, a website worthy of adding to a favorite list as a valuable resource. It seems apparent to me know that jumping into the workplace and actually experiencing the difficulties in a systematic approach is the best way and if we can create benchmarks for each industry, at least we

Your review seems to capture the essence of the MIT Workplace quite well. I like the fact that this organization seeks out opportunities to show action rather than rest on research and studied information. I am a factual person and can relate to approaches based on demographics and other work-family based statistics that can show a more complete picture. From your review I gather that MIT Workplace Center has a well thought out strategy with appropriate goals that help provide beneficial change to company structures and workplace initiatives.

The Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) is the state government agency charged with overseeing and providing workforce development services to employers and job seekers of Texas. For employers, TWC offers recruiting, retention, training and retraining, and outplacement services as well as valuable information on labor law and labor market statistics. For job seekers, TWC offers career development information, job search resources, training programs, and, as appropriate, unemployment benefits. While targeted populations receive intensive assistance to overcome barriers to employment all Texans can benefit from the services offered by TWC and our network of workforce partners. The Texas Work & Family Clearinghouse provides information and links to resources on work-family programs and policies for employers, employees, policymakers, and the public. They use the TWC as their researching source. They are funded by the federal tax revenue and are a free service for Texans. Because they are funded by the federal government, it leads me to believe that they have credibility about the reliability of the site and its information. Does the site have built in bias? For example is the Web page an advertisement for a product or service? I really didn't see any advertizing or political agenda for this site.

Chrysula's website is a blog where she writes about work life balance strategies. She also has a section to where you can contact her for coaching and advisement. Many of her posts focus on ways to lead an integrated life to include raising a family, working, and living by your values. She seems to usually write from either personal experience or the experiences of acquaintances. She also includes categories from work life balance to mothering, fathering, and reforming and has links for work life reformers such as Sloan Foundation Work and Family and Alliance for Work Life Progress. Chrysula's experience and qualifications include a Masters degree focusing on work life issues and training and development. She blogs regularly with MomsRising.org and the Huffington Post and she will also have work published in two books this year: Dare to Dream and The 12 Powers of Motherhood. She is the Social Media Marketing Director for Foundation/Mashable Digital Media Lounge for UN Week on Changing the World One Mother at a Time. Chrysula's information was both subjective and objective. She listed links in her blog posts to different research that was done on the topic she was discussing to back up her opinion or information. She also provided links to changes in government policy that dealt with work life balance. Her blogs and information were all current as well and the website was easy to navigate. It was also well maintained and every link to outside sites worked. Chrysula's attended audience seemed to be geared toward working mothers and women in general although she has a whole category on fathering and much of her advice can used by both men and women searching for balance in their lives. One thing that Chrysula mentions in many of her blog posts is the importance of actually talking to your boss about you work/life balance issues. You can complain all you want, but if you never ask for flexibility then you are never going to get it. I think that

The Center for Work and Family originated in 1990 with a purpose of guiding employers in balancing personal/professional with success in the work place. There "vision is that companies and communities will work together to ensure their mutual prosperity and the well being of employees and their families." The website discusses informative news and studies conducted. Also they provide membership information. The site reveals the faculty involved and corporate partners sharing a common interest. The intended audience is big business organizations to become members. The website gives contact and membership information as well as a survey to help a business with work/life culture. Boston College is in the top 35 business schools where the CWF was founded. The credibility of information on this educational website is very high. The individuals involved including professors, deans, marketing, human resource directors are the legitimate "brains behind the operation". This organization is filled with hundreds of members affiliated with the college and member who are not. The website also provides a survey including specific elements to helping an organization with work/life success. Since the college offers this organization, you can argue that this site is an advertisement. The CWF has a social agenda regarding the bridge of academics, efficiency, and professionalism. This website was very interesting regarding the time and effort into helping big named companies work more efficiently with employees. The fact that Boston College backs this organization helps the success rate.

I liked your review Nikki. I have much admiration for Center for Work tryin to join together companies and communities. Often times businesses may be located in a community and not connected sharing the mutual prosperity that you speak of in your review. From you review I like the fact that Center for Work and Family discuss informative information that lets the viewer know a little more about the company and then update them with current studies that have been conducted and other additional news. This website relates to my own life and the company I work for. Caterpillar may be one of the top companies in the world, but still is involved in the Peoria area community and keeps the area up-to-date with current events and business operations that could have somekind of impact on our community.

I think having the backing of Boston College does them well. Given the institutional support of knowledge and research to feed into your organization how can you go wrong. I think a website that offers the convience of such life balancing solutions is way of the future giving immediate response to issues that your employees or organization may require.

The Civic Practices Network is a group of civil servants from educators, doctors, community organization leaders, and environmentalists to name a few that are working together to empower families and develop new strategies for solving problems that families are facing everyday. Their mission is to tell inspirational stories, research, and wisdom in order to educate other about the ever changing world we live in. This site brings in an audience from a truly diverse range of people. The publications are open to the public and each article or page is able to be printed and reviewed by anyone. The site seems to be credible in that it is backed by many universities and professionals. The editors and partners are also back by educated professionals. I did not notice advertising for any products or items. There are materials, tools, and case studies that can be viewed online or printed off, there are not any materials that need purchased. From this site I learned that it is important to have partners. From this site I was introduced to several other organizations that are also working towards a goal of family, work, and community improvement. It is great that they are working together and are able to help each other reach as many people as they can.

Brooke, I enjoyed your article, I just found that the CPN website was a little light on information but, the did offer a good guide on Sexual Harrassment. I have to admit I am still a ittle unclear as to who the site is geared towards and what exactly they do but, the Sexual Harrassment Guide is very good and offered some information that is relevant.

Brooke, I also enjoyed your article. I agree with Ernest in that the CPN website had little information. Sexual Harrassment is such a big topic these days so maybe their focus on that guide is well appriciated. That would apply to a lot of people and would answer the quesiton of who it is geared toward.

The National Child Care Information and Technical Assistance Center (NCCIC) is a website devoted to providing childcare information to parents for the development of their children and information to those in the childcare field. NCCIC provides information for childcare companies and parents that are the target audience for NCCIC material. The information that I reviewed from the website was very relevant to childcare and offered information that I found to be very useful. The NCCIC provided a searchable library that can help a user find articles and information on work and family issues. It also provided information for professional development in the child care field. I found the NCCIC site to be very credible because it is sponsored only by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. One of the more interesting observations about the website is the information for the licensing for child care providers. The website did not have any advertisement and sponsors and is fully owned by the U S Health department. This leads me to believe that the site does not have a bias and is strictly there to provide information. There we not any links to take users to websites to join to further a political agenda. This in my opinion is always a great sign. The only issue that I have with the site is that it is too much information. This can be overwhelming to typical users and such. The library to pull research and articles is a bit difficult to use. However if I was interested in child care and wanted to develop a further understanding of finding out about the procedure to become a licensed child care facility, this would be a place I would recommend.

I agree there is a lot of information on this site. It is designed primarily for educators and they really like their information all in one place. Wow, there is a lot of links and references, so many that for the average reader, it is overwhelming. But Wow, there is some great information on this site, like early learning guidelines and school readiness information. I can see how this would be a very useful place to get regulations and information for any child development education setting. As a parent, I could use this site to make sure they are meeting the expectations of the minimum governmental standards. This would have been nice 15 years ago and I am glad to see it now for all the future parents.

This is truly a great website. I have saved to my favorite and know that I will be referencing this many times throughout my life, both as a parent (one day) and (hopefully) as a childcare center owner. I am actually surprised that I have not already come across this site throughout my searching, but am definitely glad to know about it now. I agree with all of your critiques about the site. I do think that the target audience is aimed mainly at educators and providers, but is a great resource for anyone interested in the abundant topics they address. It is well organized and easy to use, so finding a specific topic shouldn't be a problem.