For decades, families have been portrayed throughout different areas of print media. Newspaper and magazine articles are among the types of media that have reflected different theories, definitions, and issues concerning families and society as a whole. Families are affected by many settings in which the individual does not take an active part in, but which have an affect on them. They are influenced by many social institutions such as schools, religious groups, laws, politics, the economy, pressure from activists and the mass media. As we leaf through sources of print media, we develop a different perspective on families, which can be related to the topics studied in NFO. Among the topics are society expectations for behaviour. For example, family members are not supposed to inflict harm on one another, but rather look after one another both physically and emotionally. Family behaviour is also limited by means of laws such as those against violence. Another important topic is the issue, which was raised about roles that occur in marriages. Conventional or traditional roles are based on the notion that the home is the proper place for women, while the labour force is the ideal place for men. The portrayal of the family in the print media is strongly reflected in the theories and data, which have been raised in NFO, such as the exosystem, family behaviour, and the structural-functional theory.
             According to James Garbarino and the ecological theory, families are a part of interlocking systems that influence each other at four levels. The exosystem is the third level and is related to the article entitled, "It's vital for care-givers to recognize warning signs." The exosystem is a setting on which individuals do not take an active part, but which has an affect on them (Ward, 11). Alexis Kuczynski was a healthy 10-year-old before she received the news that she had cancer of the left kidney. Doctors still don't understand why it happens...