1. Family Collage: The O.C.
An Analysis of the Cohen Family
Katie Glencross
CMS 332: Communication in the Family

2. Family Characters
• Sandy Cohen
– Sandy is considered the
moral center of the
family; he often gives
guidance and advice to
both of his sons. He has
a law degree, and works
as a public defender.
• Kirsten Cohen
– She is considered the
breadwinner of the
family. She works at her
father’s company, which
is a very successful real
estate business.

3. Family Characters, Continued
• Seth Cohen
– Seth is the biological child
of Sandy and Kirsten
Cohen. Seth likes comic
books and indie music, and
often uses humor as a
defense mechanism.
• Ryan Atwood
– Ryan was adopted by
Sandy, who was originally
his lawyer. Unlike the
Cohens, who are affluent,
Ryan’s biological family is
poor and his mom is an
abusive alcoholic.

4. The Cohen Family
• The Cohen Family is an
example of a blended
family, which our book
describes as one that
“consists of two adults
and their children, all of
whom are not from the
union of their
relationship” (9). This is
true, since Ryan was
adopted into the family.

5. Authority Structure
• The Cohens are an
example of an egalitarian
marriage, which our book
describes as a marriage in
which “both partners
wish to jointly share
home responsibilities as
well as take advantage of
career opportunities.
Power is to be shared”
(171).

6. Authority Structure, Continued
• Although Kirsten starts
out as the
breadwinner, Sandy fills
the role as CEO of the
real estate business
after the death of her
father.
• Both parents have very
open lines of
communication with
their sons.

7. Communication
• Communication rules are
“shared understandings of
what communication means
and what kinds of
communication are
appropriate in various
situations” (83).
• One of the communication
rules in the Cohen family is
that they will openly discuss
sex with their children. When
Seth needs sex advice, he feels
comfortable talking to Sandy
about his problems.

8. Traditions and Rituals
• Sandy is Jewish, and
Kirsten is Protestant, so
their union brought about
the celebration of a
holiday called
‘Chrismukkah’ for the
children. This is an
example of how the union
of two different cultures
led to the creation of a
new ritual for family
celebrations.

9. Barriers to Intimacy
• “Jealousy is an aversive
emotional experience
characterized by feelings of
anger, sadness, and fear
induced by the threat or actual
loss of a relationship with
another person to a real or
imagined rival” (146).
• There is an underlying theme
of jealousy and mistrust with
the Cohen’s next door
neighbor, Jimmy Cooper, who
was Kirsten’s high school
sweetheart.

10. Barriers to Intimacy, Continued
• Kirsten’s fear that her
husband was cheating
on her with an ex-
girlfriend that came
back to town led to an
increased reliance on
alcohol as a coping
mechanism.

11. Alcoholism and Family Stress
• “Alcoholism distorts a family’s
patterns of behavior and
communication, affecting all
members” (296).
• In addition to Ryan’s biological
mother struggling with
addiction issues, Kirsten
begins to use alcohol to cope
with the deterioration of her
and Sandy’s marriage.
Ultimately, the concern of her
sons leads her to seek help
and go to rehab.

12. Untimely Death
• “Sudden death, such as a
car accident, provides
family members no
opportunity to say
farewell or resolve
relationship issues with
the individual” (287).
• After the death of his
girlfriend, Marissa, in a
car accident, Ryan relies
on the love of the Cohens
to bring him out of a dark
patch in his life.

13. Calibration
• “The function of
maintaining stability in a
system is called
calibration” (61).
• Throughout all the bad
things that happened
through the series, the
Cohen family manages to
constantly recalibrate
their relationships with
one another, to maintain
a strong and loving family
relationship.

14. Works Cited
Galvin, Kathleen M., and Bernard J. Brommel.
Family Communication: Cohesion and Change.
Glenview, IL: Scott, Foresman, 1986. Print.