Family Relations and Dynamics - Assignment Example

? Family Relations and Dynamics In the contemporary society, family dynamics have influenced various socio-economic factors of the community. A critical analysis of the incidences around the family indicates that there are intrinsic motivations behind some of the morals, behavior and choices that individuals make. In bringing up a family, it is imperative that the parent or the guardian is well aware of growth dynamics and understand how each affects their family. It requires being critical and conscious of every aspect that surround the family, including the way the family relates with outsiders. There are various issues that have been characteristic of families especially when a critical analysis and evaluation lacks, these includes, domestic violence, child abuse, teen violence, suicide, aging, depression, divorce, and separation among others. Theses aspects have profound implications on the well-being of the family if proper management is deficient. In contrary, there are families that are characterized by peace, well being, mutual understanding, unity and being development minded among others. The foundation of such, in most cases is a key player in the way growth and development happens. There are four major aspects of critical thinking that makes a family develop the above-mentioned positive traits; these elements are sound reasoning, rationality, logic and constructive arguments. Research has pointed out various advantages of critical thinking in a family setup that drives a healthy family, contrary to which unethical and morally unacceptable happenings and mindsets takes toll. Various authors have put across their arguments and counterarguments concerning family relationships and dynamics. This paper will focus on some of the thoughts presented by various scholars, commentators, writers and analysts while providing a critical view of the arguments presented. The acquisition of this knowledge is very beneficial to every body since we are all part of a family; it is paramount that we understand the dynamics therein and have a defined action plan. A critical thinker is a uniting factor, promoter of the social as well as the economic well being of a family. Teens are part of the family; they are very explorative and are very much under the influence of the adolescent stage of growth. The ability to master the dynamics that accompanies this stage can help in facilitating growth of healthy teens that have a positive perception of life. In addition, they are able to overcome some of the pressures that come with the stage. According to Francine Kiefer and Neil Erwin of ‘The Christian Science Monitor’, taming adolescence in order to prevent related incidences such violence requires diverse interventions. They advocate for customized efforts that range from simplistic means such as giving rewards for good acts and the complement of good acts by demonstrating appreciation through a word of mouth. In addition, psychological counseling programs can be embraced especially for behaviors that are getting to be exposed publicly. The family is the ore unit that should look into this aspect; however, the community too has its input. Friends shape one’s behavior while the teachers also should embrace the same aspects to make the teens develop to overcome adolescence. The conclusive remarks that were made by David Osher, a researcher with the American Institutes for Research, depicts that there is a possibility of a complete transformation in teenagers if proper preventive measures are implemented. The two authors suggest that the convectional means of having to frisk students so that they are seen to be unarmed was an aspect that encouraged violence the more. A more close home approach that does not require much effort is the introduction of ‘red stickers’, communication tools that warn that doing something has certain consequences. To complement this strategy, the teenagers are allowed around twenty minutes in a day to learn social skills. It is reported that the best change of behavior is majorly demonstrated by teens when they are in their middle school as well as in high school. In case there are warning signs that appears among the teens, it means that the situation is getting to a critical stage; therefore, they should be addressed on a serious position through either counseling or other appropriate stringent mechanism. If the signs are not addressed the likelihood of the child developing into a violent adult is very high (Kiefer and Irwin, 2000). A critical thinker is able to analyze the specific needs of the teen and be able to solve them appropriately. Understanding the psychological aspect behind a behavior, applying realistic and sound reasoning, and making the appropriate decision are requirements for a healthy teenage development. Teen violence has diverse causes and there are interventions that can be adopted to prevent the vice. Hopkins points out that there are five major causes of violence among the teenagers, most of which are based on the background of the family. Family dynamics alters the behavior of the teens hence making them subject to unethical societal evils. According to the blog, the menace of teen violence has been on the rise in the recent years and interventions needs to be sought. Exposing worrying statistics that around 16% of the total violent crimes in the United States are committed being committed by teenagers. These statistics are based on the report released by the Centre for Disease Control. Incidences of murder, sexual assault, battery ad assault have all been reported to be caused by teenagers leaving several questions about the families from which these youngsters come from. Abuse at home is a major contributor of teen violence, this is because they learn the violence from home and try translating the same to other people. Sometimes the children develop emotional trauma that impairs their cognitive development hence they are unable to inculcate some of the societal expectations such as good mannerisms and ethics. In addition, their attitude towards life and others is shaped by violence. Therefore, at every instance they will demonstrate use of force, rebellion and doing wrong to others. External influences are also important in shaping the life of a person. Media influences, video games, friends, and the general environment that the individual interacts with influences them greatly, this is worse for teenagers because they learn much from hearing and listening. The family plays a pivotal role in correcting this aspect by not only regulating what the they are exposed to but also getting to discuss the authenticity of the content that is of questionable character. Gangs of young people are the breeding grounds for violence, it appears the teenagers compose themselves in groups and start engaging in heinous acts. When the police cracks the whip killing some of them, the young people become more radical and engage in more violent and illegal acts. Alcohol and drugs have also contributed greatly to violence among the teenagers. Most of the times, alcohol consumption and drug use results to oppositional defiant disorder that should be addressed as a matter of urgency. Lastly, an underlying mental disorder is likely to cause violence among the teenagers Hopkins, 2013). All these aspects should be critically checked before they become developed in an individual and immediate intervention done. Aging is also part of the human life cycle that comes from the advancement of age. Aging affects the family in a great way and should be looked at critically in terms of the aging parents and the maturing children. The chances of developing conflict within a family are highly likely as the children mature or the parents become old, inheritance as well as possession issues mainly aggravate such conflict. John Gibson and Bonnie Brown Hartley in their handbook ‘A Fire Drill’, presents the scenarios that are related to aging. They mentions that aging is one of the unprecedented aspects by many people, the perception is that one will continue to be productive and have a sound mind capable of logical and critical thinking. A situation that is not the case. Old age brings many changes to the life of an individual, these changes are usually a point of weakness for the family if proper management lacks. Many families in the modern setup have embraced small families, leaving the burden of taking care of the elderly parents in the hands of a few individuals in that makes up the family. The authors emphasize that times change and the tendency to be independent has grown, this is a preparation for preparations to be done prior to aging by a parent. It is uncertain that the child will continue to have the interest of the parent, therefore, the need for one to prepare well before their productivity begins dwindling (Gibson and Hartley, 2006). Critical thoughts and sound reasoning play a great role in helping the community advance towards care for the elderly as well as being sensitive that one day aging will come and will attract certain consequences. It is paramount that apart having to plan well in advance for the economic implications, a critical thinker should address the potential family conflicts, engaging in conversation with the aging parents, developing common understanding between the siblings and having a common family tradition that is entrenched through the family beliefs. Finances either can facilitate the establishment of stability or can be a potential source of conflicts in a family. Several incidences have been reported of individuals that have gone overboard and killed their family members or caused insurmountable damages because of a row over property and money. Family financial socialization is an important subject that requires the family members to have a common view of the family wealth. According to Danes and Gudmunson the skills, values, attitudes and the knowledge that is impacted to the young members of the family becomes entrenched in them and influence their consumption patterns. This responsibility solely falls on the parents to act and train the children to have a view of financial responsibility that is ethical and financially healthy. Financial well being is a contribution of a financial culture developed in the family, this culture emanates from the capabilities of the family, financial principles, attitudes, and knowledge. Purposeful financial socialization and the family relationship and interactions predict the discipline that the family adopts as its financial behavior. All these factors emanate from one common source relating to the personal and family characteristics. The overall outcome of these positive characteristics is the ultimate wellbeing of the family in terms of not only the financial aspect but also wholly (Danes and Gudmunson, 2011). If such values and virtues are entrenched in a family, peace, unity, cohesion and mutual understanding in a family will be a tradition. However, the personality of the individual has a big role to play in the way one advances to make their family what it is supposed to be. A critical thinker is capable of capturing the personalities of the individuals in a family and attempts to create mutual understanding by implementing issues that are relevant for the wellbeing of the family. Depression in a family can result to detrimental effects in the short term as well as the long-term. Chances are high that a depressed member of the family can transmit the depression or its effects to other members of the family, the children are mostly the most affected since they easily develop psychopathology. According to Seguin et al. Depression in parents increases the chances of depression in children by a factor of two to five resulting to behavioral disorders. Depression can be caused by a myriad factors emanating from within the family or external factors such as workplace, relatives, and political situation among others. It is apparent that developmental issues contribute greatly to depression; issues such as the background that an individual was brought up as well as the current environment can lead to depression. At adolescence, a very critical stage in the development of a person, there is need for parental and community supports the young person under intensive influence of hormones. Depression at this stage is likely if these parties do not play their role. In addition, the need for positive interactions at this stage is necessary. Depressed mothers have problems parenting their own children and there is likelihood that they will transmit the depression to the children unless an appropriate therapy is administered. Other factors that can result to aspects related to depression include, lack of consistency in care giving, and weaning of the child at a very early age while attempting a complete separation with the child (Seguin et al, 2003). These aspects make it difficult for these children to effectively bond with others and their attitude toward themselves has a negative dimension. This can be corrected by providing support that will see the person overcome the negative mindset and treat themselves with dignity and self worth. Whenever one of the members of the family is depressed or exhibits symptoms close to depression, it is impervious that the other members should be able to help the person contain the situation and not worsen the situation. Understanding of these aspects is very beneficial to all of us in the capacity of either parents or children. Critical thinking is very beneficial for an individual who has a thought of committing suicide. The immediate family plays a great role in helping a person with such thoughts. Family members can help the individual overcome the situation in several ways. According to Thomas Joiner’s model of why people die through committing suicide, people commit suicide because they would like to inflict harm to themselves as well as the lack of a sense of belonging and having an inferior view of self. The family is a very important ground for character development as well as a place where an individual should get to decipher their self worth and self-image. The complements and positive feedback one gets from the family helps to shape their view of self. If such happens, the possibility of suicidal behavior taking preeminence does not exist (Salvatore, 2009). Several factors can make one feel as if they are a burden to others such as laziness, mental conditions, unproductive efforts, and drug use among others. Giving room for the idea of committing suicide haunts an individual until they end up planning t commit suicide. When the person attempts suicide, fails, and no intervention is made, recidivism is likely. According to Smith et al. suicide does not occur at the instance an individual thinks of committing the act. This means that suicide attempt is a progressive and stepwise plan and process that originates from some source and then grows to the extent of suicide (Smith et al., 2008). The family has a role in detection of the situation before it aggravates and implementing suitable measures. Communication in a family is a catalyst to realization of the attempt for suicide by an individual; it may happen that the person opens up hence can be helped overcome the suicidal thoughts. Threats or constant talks about suicide may drive one to committing suicide, if an individual gets to repeatedly talk about it, immediate intervention is necessary. It is paramount that such a person is helped despite having been talking about the same thing repeatedly (Paris, 2007). Confronted with such situations a critical thinker is expected to provide solutions that are not only immediate but also sustainable. The people affected by unpleasant incidences in a family are usually very resentful of their families and try to cut every link with them. To rejoin and help them accept these people again can be a daunting task especially if one is deficient of the right approach to the incidence. In others, where the treatment was not intended but it resulted to negative implications, the likelihood of transmitting the traits is very high. Therefore, a professional is required to guide such individuals through a systematic chain of therapy. The family has the role of finding the counselor who will provide the attention that the person requires. Emotional development is very important for an individual in the course growth especially at childhood. Such persons have no firm stand, they open up to new ideas presented to them but are incapable to resist persuasions from others. If the parents utilize such an opportunity, they are capable of brainwashing all the wrong ideas, attitudes and perceptions in the child hence facilitating normal growth. People need positive reinforcement instead of condemnation even when they are wrong. As the child is fed with ideas and advice, they should have the window to choose whatever they prefer; this fosters decision-making and facilitates wholesome development of an individual. All around the society, there is need to have individuals that are capable of providing directions and motivations to others. In addition, every person in the family has an obligation of inculcating a positive culture in the homestead by demonstrating love and care. Academic knowledge is very influential at both local and global social platforms. Information is the power that controls the world. It empowers individuals to compete globally with others that are at par with in terms of knowledge. The knowledge that is acquired though books in the institutions of learning are translated to experience, creativity and innovativeness that are aspects that fosters globalization. Through the knowledge acquire in school, it is very possible to make direct community interventions such as developing the community through community projects that are related to one’s field of study. The knowledge in the institutions of learning helps in growing the leadership skills in individuals hence they are capable of exposing their prowess at global and local platforms. In the family relations, knowledge acquired through education is very important and has direct application. Aspects such as the biological functionality of a person is applied directly as learnt in school, however social elements are directly applied according to the theory or proposition that on believes in most. There are diverse thoughts that appear in social sciences hence, providing the students to embrace the most viable view for a given occasion. Understanding aspects such as self-efficacy is a very beneficial aspect because its results are tested and found to have positive results. In addition to self-efficacy, other strategies can be used to motivate individuals. All these have significance at a given time for a particular group of people. Another thing that academic knowledge benefits in is that it helps in building on the existing body of knowledge (Elder and Cosgrove, 2013). The principle of Active Citizenship is very important for the family relations and dynamics. The individuals are capable of feeling as if they are part of each other, making them engage to engage in the development of the family. The family is the basic unit of the community, therefore when individuals take responsibility at the most basic unit, and then it means the world will be wholly transformed because everyone is part of a family. This is the simplest strategy to enhance active citizenship. If every family have no conflict and the dynamics in the family are not ignored whatsoever, then it means that the entire community will be in harmony courtesy of the family members. It therefore becomes easy and convenient to handle national or international issues. Families that develop cohesiveness are likely to engage in productive activities together, this translates to the responsibility of the business to support community projects. The government is also likely to take its position if all is well from the family unit. Family relations can derail a great deal in the development of Active Citizenship, if there are conflicts and disagreements in the family relations at the community level are hampered, development is put on hold and the people leave in suspicion. Active citizenship is enhanced when individuals take a in developing themselves and the larger community. In conclusion, critical thinking is a very essential aspect in the family setup. It fosters economic, political and social benefits for individuals in the family while translating the benefits to the entire society. Aspects such as suicide are reduced when people critical thinking. Critical thinkers are not born; they inculcate the skill as they learn from the environment, books and other resources at their disposal. An individual is required to entrench the principles of sound reasoning, fairness, logic and above all being rational. These aspects makes the family remain in unity, relate wisely by avoiding conflicts and resolving them amicably. In addition, individuals are motivated and have a sense of belonging. References Elder, L. and Cosgrove, R. (2013). Critical Societies: Thoughts from the Past. The Critical Thinking Community. Retrieved on December 17, 2013 from http://www.criticalthinking.org/pages/critical-societies-thoughts-from-the-past/762 Francine, K. and Irwin, N. (2000, May 02). How schools stop teen violence recent shootings have prompted districts nationwide to try new programs, and a template for success is emerging.The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved on December 17, 2013 from http://search.proquest.com/docview/405643885?accountid=45049 Gibson, J.W and Hartley, B.B. (2006). The Dynamics of Aging Families. Venice: Cultivating Change LLC. Retrieved on December 17, 2013 from http://careconversations.org/Files/The%20Dynamics%20of%20Aging%20Families%20-A%20Handbook%20for%20Adult%20Children%20interactive%20e.pdf Gudmunson, C. G., & Danes, S. M. (2011). Family financial socialization: Theory and critical review. Journal of Family and Economic Issues, 32(4), 644-667. Retrieved on December 17, 2013 from doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10834-011-9275-y Hopkins, Kris. (2013).Top 5 Causes of Teen Violence. Retrieved on December 17, 2013 from http://dadditudes.com/2013/04/08/top-5-causes-of-teen-violence/11502/ Paris, J. (2007) Half in Love with Death. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Salvatore, T. (2009, August).Suicide Prevention for Consumers and Family Members. Retrieved on December 17, 2013 from http://www.mces.org/PDFs/suicidefamily.pdf Seguin et al., (2003). Adolescent depression, family psychopathology and parent/child relations: A case control Study.pubmed. Retrieved on December 17, 2013 from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2538453/ Smith, A. et al. (2008) “Revisiting Impulsivity in Suicide” Behavioral Science Law 26(6) 779-797 Read More