Saturday, September 29, 2012
Friday, September 28, 2012
Dynamics and Theories of the Family
This weeks class was especially interesting for me. Throughout this year I have been studying the well known family therapist, Salvador Minuchin. Minuchin played a very crucial role in the development of family systems therapy. I greatly admire his work and find his personality to be very interesting and quite humorous. As I read of family systems theory and as we went over it this last week I have begun to notice that my family has been so much more important in the development of who I am today than I could have ever have imagined in my adolescents. I would go even further to say that Family Systems theory has helped me to recognize the family to be one of the most complex institutions that we humans are involved in.
If you are reading this and you do not know what family systems theory is or you are still having a hard time understanding its significance, allow me to quote from Salvador Minuchin from his book Families and Family Therapy.
To further describe family systems theory, Minuchin quotes Ortega y Gasset when he said, "I am myself plus my circumstances, and if I do not save it, I cannot save myself. This sector of circumstantial reality forms the other half of my person; only through it can I integrate and be fully myself."
If you are reading this and you do not know what family systems theory is or you are still having a hard time understanding its significance, allow me to quote from Salvador Minuchin from his book Families and Family Therapy.
"Instead of focusing on the individual, the therapist [focuses] on the person within his family. ...Structural family therapy, [is] a body of theory and techniques that approaches the individual in his or [her] social context. ...Man's [and woman's] experience is determined by...[their] interaction with...[their] environment."
To further describe family systems theory, Minuchin quotes Ortega y Gasset when he said, "I am myself plus my circumstances, and if I do not save it, I cannot save myself. This sector of circumstantial reality forms the other half of my person; only through it can I integrate and be fully myself."
- With that quote in mind, consider these questions. Who would you be without the influence of your parents or siblings? Would you be the same? How much of their behavior has contributed to your behavior today?
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Societal Trends and the Family
Societal trends are behaviors within a society that are repeated over a period of time. Research finds that many of the family societal trends today are causing changes in the make-up of a family.
A few of the Societal trends we discussed in class are as follows:
-Waiting longer to marry
-Cohabitation
-Fewer children
-Non-marital births
-employed mothers
-Household size
-Divorce rates
-Living alone
-Premarital sex
Depending on upbringing and culture and many others circumstances, these trends could be looked at in different ways by different people. I do feel however that there are a few that ought to cause concern for anyone, no matter what culture you belong to. I would like to hear your thoughts and reasoning if you were to disagree. I admit that what I have learned of family trends is very base and minimal when it comes to the actual research to the trends. So I appreciate the feedback.
One of the trends that I feel strongly about is Non-marital births. This trend is simply when a mother gives birth to a child who does not have a father and mother who are married. This circumstance may have various implications. The mother could be single and will need to raise the child on her own. The mother may be receiving child support from a boyfriend who is willing to help financially but not physically. Or, the mother and boyfriend could be cohabiting and they are willing to raise the child together unmarried. Although I feel the latter situation is the most ideal out of the three, I still think it can be improved. A few questions I asked myself when I first learned of this societal family trend were; What happens to the child? What do studies show with children who grow up in a single-parent home as compared to a home with a mother and father? Are there differences between a cohabiting couple and a married couple in terms of commitment? I wish to, throughout this semester, find answers to these questions. I have heard that the research is out there. I would also make it a point to include the research to these trends and their impact when I do come across such studies. I encourage you to search as well.
A few of the Societal trends we discussed in class are as follows:
-Waiting longer to marry
-Cohabitation
-Fewer children
-Non-marital births
-employed mothers
-Household size
-Divorce rates
-Living alone
-Premarital sex
Depending on upbringing and culture and many others circumstances, these trends could be looked at in different ways by different people. I do feel however that there are a few that ought to cause concern for anyone, no matter what culture you belong to. I would like to hear your thoughts and reasoning if you were to disagree. I admit that what I have learned of family trends is very base and minimal when it comes to the actual research to the trends. So I appreciate the feedback.
One of the trends that I feel strongly about is Non-marital births. This trend is simply when a mother gives birth to a child who does not have a father and mother who are married. This circumstance may have various implications. The mother could be single and will need to raise the child on her own. The mother may be receiving child support from a boyfriend who is willing to help financially but not physically. Or, the mother and boyfriend could be cohabiting and they are willing to raise the child together unmarried. Although I feel the latter situation is the most ideal out of the three, I still think it can be improved. A few questions I asked myself when I first learned of this societal family trend were; What happens to the child? What do studies show with children who grow up in a single-parent home as compared to a home with a mother and father? Are there differences between a cohabiting couple and a married couple in terms of commitment? I wish to, throughout this semester, find answers to these questions. I have heard that the research is out there. I would also make it a point to include the research to these trends and their impact when I do come across such studies. I encourage you to search as well.
Friday, September 14, 2012
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