Social Work with Couples and Families - Article Example

? First There are various family setups, which are in existence in the contemporary society. There are those families, which are nuclear in nature. This entails only the parents and the children living together. On the other hand, there is the family, which can be termed as being extended. In this case, all the members of the family are living together. Chapter three of the readings look at the three-generation families. These are the sort of families, which consist of several individuals living together including even the extended family. The author in this case starts by pointing out that in the contemporary American society this sort of family setup is one, which is associated with the middleclass families in most cases. It is of the essence to note that in such a family setting, several generations of individuals may find themselves living together in the same house. Say a grandmother and a child may end up under the same roof. This is something, which brings about the question of parenting. In the aforementioned example, when the grandmother lives with the child and at the same time the child’s parents are also there, who is parenting the child? It is important to note that with this revelation, the child may grow up facing various situations, which are influenced by the person who was around it when it was growing up. There are also families that are associated with a stepparent, a single parent and what not. All these are issues, which are of significant influence on the individuals who are in the family itself. A person who is looking into the happenings in families that take up such a setting may take great interest in knowing how the various members of the family are handling the situations that are being exhibited by such families. The author of this article is of the opinion that the various family environments have far-reaching effects on the parties involved. To a greater extent some of these may be negative. I do believe that some of the members of these families might have foreseen such happenings. For this reason, they might have come up with measures to cushion the effects when they happen. Take a case example of psychosomatic families. These are the families, which are highlighted as those where the people get involved with each other only during certain times say when one is sick. This is not to say that this is always the case. Such families might have identified that this is a problem when it happens once or twice. After this, they might find probable ways of addressing the issue and prevent it from happening again. There are various tools, which therapists use when it comes to seeking deeper understanding of families. One of the ways through which this is achieved is through the use of genograms which are meant to depict the members of the families and some of the characteristics which are prevalent in the family. The information, which is collected for the genogram, is one, which is achieved through assessments of the members of the various members of the family involved, and once it is complete, it helps the therapist get significantly understanding of the family, which is in question. It is also of importance to look at some of the ways that are used to examine the various members of the family. The information of the family is scanned vertically and horizontally on the genogram. Examining the horizontal aspect of the genogram enables the therapist to get an understanding of how the members of the family are connected to each other. Through such an assessment, the strengths and the weaknesses that are exhibited by the family can be highlighted. After the analysis of the genogram, there are some probable predictions and conclusions, which can be reached by the person who is analyzing them. This is then what will be used to advise the members of the family accordingly. The author of the article points out that this information is what can be used to model some probable patterns of the family and provide any relevant information that is related to the people. It is also predicted that the things, which reflect themselves on one generation, can be passed on to another generation. Well, this may not always be the case if it is to be reflected by the genogram. This is especially with the realization that the genogram is somewhat limited with regards to the information which it provides in relation to the family members. I do believe that what the author points out in the article is to some extent limiting. This is because the information which is collected for the purpose of populating the genogram is collected from the people who are involved in the assessment by the therapist. To some extent, the information, which is gained through this process, may not be entirely reflective of the situation at hand. For this reason, in as much as it is used to deduce some information about members of a family, this information may not be all inclusive. For this reason, using this information to come up with some conclusions about certain things related to an individual or his or her family may not be conclusive when it comes to making a decision about him or her. The next issue, which is of importance in the contemporary society, is that to do with the relationships, which people engage in. The one, which is of focus in this particular instance, is in relation to the various types of couples that may be there. In this particular regard, there are individuals who may prefer to be same sex couples while on the other hand there are those who prefer different sex relationships. The various dynamics, which are associated with these individuals, are being brought into perspective by the author of the fifth chapter. To a greater extent the society holds these people to be somewhat different from other people. It is, however, of importance to note that the lesbians also go through all the things, which heterosexual couples go through. It may be expected that these couples may be people who have normal lives with less conflicts, which other normal couples have. This is not the case, however, as pointed out in the case example related to Joan and Sandy. The problems, which come up in the course of their lives to some extent, end up influencing the relationships, which these people share with each other. At times things may go out of hand to an extent that they end up seeking relationship therapy. There are some things, which have to be understood when it comes to lesbians. attraction of the people in question. There is no clear explanation as to why a person may become of a particular sexual orientation, say heterosexual, gay or even lesbian. It has come to be realized that quite a number of people tend to think that nature and nurture plays a role when it comes to the establishment of a person’s sexual orientation. The truth is that for most people if not all there is actually no choice when it comes to their sexual orientation. It is at the same time rather hard to establish whether there are external issues that have a hand when it comes to the establishment of a person’s sexual orientation. Quite a number of arguments have been brought to light regarding this issue but yet again there has been no clear conclusion as to how to treat the issue altogether. However, there are some instances in the life of a person, which may have an influential role regarding then orientation that will be associated with that particular individual. A practical example is when a child is abused sexually by the parent of the opposite sex. In most cases what has happened is that the child will develop a negative attitude towards the members of the opposite sex. The result of this is that this person may end up having a sexual orientation, which may be viewed to be out of the ordinary or societal expectations. If it is a female child, she may opt for lesbianism. This is why at times dealing with people in same sex relationships may be rather difficult. The author in chapter five points out that despite the fact that it may be perceived that people in same sex relationships may be okay with each other, it is also of the essence to note that they have problems just like all other couples. The family is something, which is a very important institution of the society. For this reason, there ought to be special measures put in place for the purpose of ensuring that these institutions remain standing. Family therapy is something, which is also important, and it should be offered to all individuals in the family. It is noted that objective family therapy is something, which is important when it comes to facilitating proper relationships between couples and their families. The main idea, which the author points out, is to do with the transfer of knowledge from the individuals who conduct this exercise to the couples who may have interest. It is indeed true that there are couples who seek family therapy with the intention of improving their relationships. On the other hand, there are some individuals who may want to sabotage the whole process. In this case, such a party may use therapy sessions to start mudslings on the other party. This is something, which is made possible through the sessions, which these individuals have. It is of the essence to point out that there are indeed various issues, which therapists face when dealing with married couples and their families. These are in relation to the growth of the families and their relations with one another. It is of the essence for the therapist to point out some of these things to the couples and advise them on ways through which they can better their relationships. This is something, which is pointed by the author in chapter six. References Haley, J (1987). Conducting The First Interview: Problem-Solving Strategy . Jossey-Bass Publication Minuchin, S. & Fishman, H. C. (1981). Planning. Family Therapy techniques. Harvard University Press Sussal, C.M. (1993). Object Relations Couples Therapy with Lesbians. Smith College Studies in Social Work Sussal C.M. (1992). Object Relations Family Therapy as a Model for Practice. Clinical Social Work Journal Read More