The articles in this special section represent cutting edge research on family routines and rituals. This comment discusses how this work may inform and be informed by other family research. This includes studying how routines develop, are maintained, and reorganize as well as how they influence individual outcomes through effects on socialization, security, and adaptation to stress. Applications of research on family routines to enhance prevention and treatment are also discussed. New directions for the study of family rituals are discussed, including how ritual events may have long-term effects on family interaction through discontinuous changes in relationship expectations of family members.