might have no
role or status at all. They are the only group in which the emigration of women to
the United States far surpassed that of men. In the United States, as in Ireland,
Irish women continued to be reluctant about marrying. They have enjoyed a comparatively
open range of economic options in domestic work, nursing, and schoolteaching. And
this, along with the high rate of desertion of Irish men from their families, augmented
female family authority. There has long been a respected role for the unmarried "Auntie
Mame," the feisty, independent, funny, and important contributor to family well-being.
Clinically, we can strengthen women by underscoring and validating this appreciation
for roles beyond mothering, helping single women see themselves as part of a long
tradition within Irish families.

Irish women have generally had little expectation of, or interestthe family can be an important first step in enabling
them to change lopsided and dysfunctional gender patterns. However, therapists must
always be careful that they do not unwittingly increase the Irish client's sense
of guilt by subtle questioning that suggests they have done something wrong.

Ridicule, belittling, and shaming have played a major role
in child discipline.

Childhood

The Irish tend to view people moralistically as good or bad, strong or weak. The
family often designates a good child and a bad one, and they may ignore aspects of
a child's behavior that do not fit their designated roles. In one Irish American
family, for example, the mother always spoke about her three children as "My
Denny, Poor Betty, and That Kathleen."

Ridicule, belittling, and shaming have played a major role in child discipline.
(Barrebee & von Mering,1953; Spiegel, 1971a,