Strengthening Family Resilience - Annotated Bibliography Example

Family and consumer science Resilience is the ability of an individual to withstand stress and adversity. Resilience has consideration as more than just accommodating a challenging situation but being more positive in the transformation and growth that gives an individual the ability to effectively deal with the challenging situation (Walsh 10). Annotated Bibliography list by Walsh, F. (2006) Walsh. (2006). Strengthening Family Resilience. (2nd edition).New York: Guilford press. This document developed by Walsh talks about the framework of family resilience that can be helpful for individuals and family members who are dealing with adversity. Her approach in developing this document has base on the research formulated for many years of teaching clinical education and her supervision as a family therapist. According to her research, the resilience framework applies to numerous family structures involving both formal and informal networks of kins .In her research, this author offers a total of nine main keys to resilience which occurs in three different areas such as beliefs systems in the family, family organization and finally resources in the family. Annotated Bibliography list by Price S.J, Price C.A and MC Kenny (2005). Price, S.J., Price, C.A. & MC Kenny, P.C., (Eds) (2005).Families & change: coping with stressful events and Transitions (3rd).Thousands lakes, CA: Sage. This document deals with the family system approaches to drug and substance abuse. It highlights brief overview of the various models to be used in identifying addictive behavior and the etiology for it. The document provides knowledge of information concerning addiction, various methods applied in assessment of addiction and basic skills to be used in treating addictive systems. The document also shows the changes that occur in the family in situations where an addict from the family dramatically stops using drugs and alcohol. Three different family stress models from which resilience models have their roots Internal stress model These are stresses caused by the behaviors of individuals within the family. Some of the inborn behaviors of some family members such as poor attitudes and troublesomeness causes a lot of family problems .The hurting feelings that some family members impacts on their loved ones causes a lot of stresses. Stresses from drug, alcohols and mental or physical illness model Stresses from abuse of drugs and alcohols affect negatively on the members of the family who are addicts. Some addicts become rough and at times indulge in unnecessary fights with other family members. All these actions of some addicts cause a lot of stress to other members of the family. External stresses model These are stresses, which results from economic problems such as natural disasters like floods, hurricanes and job loss. All these external factors cause a lot of stress to family members. Walsh’s keys to family resilience Making meaning to crisis and challenge Crisis is viewed as a shared challenge to resilience families. In these families, relationships are basically vital and the members of these families have a belief of joining other family members who are considered significant to them. By doing so, these families can strengthen their ability to face the resulting challenges together. Maintaining a positive outlook Many resilience family members encourage one another and enforce confidence sense in one another. The art of possibility is always master by these resilience family members by taking the load of the crisis cases and building their focus on their strengths and energies. Value transcendence and spiritually These families do find purpose and connection in other things that are beyond themselves and their members. The morals and spiritual values act as the source of strength for the family members. Deep connection with nature offers to the members of these families the spiritual nourishment. Flexible These families’ posses’ structures that are flexible in a way that their needs and challenges can be modified with ease to fit them. Resilience families do not have a rigid conception of the rules and role of the family. Connection These families value member’s count that is each member in the family counts. The members do respect each other. These family members recognize and are able to weigh separateness and connectedness. Supported by social and economic resources These families have a network of people and organizations that offers support in cases of challenges. The network assists other members. In the family communication, the families offer: Share clear and consistent messages The communication between these members is clear and consistent. All the members understand crisis faced by the family. Openly express their emotions The members of the family trust each other and always encourage one another to be open and share frankly their problems. The members of the family always seek chances of humor and pleasures. Use of collaborative problem solving The members of these families always pin point the problems and seek options of tackling them. Creative brainstorming is employed to come up with a discovery of the problem. Four tasks in adaptation to loss as identified by Walsh and McGoldrick Shared acknowledgement of the traumatic event reality and losses The facts about the traumatic events should be shared by members who have undergone through the event and the circumstances that led to the event and finally the ambiguities of the events. Shared experience of loss and survivorship There should be active participation in the rituals, rite of passage, and the tributes. The emotional expressions need sharing. Reorganization of the family and the community: survivor’s well-being plans There should be stabilization to foster continuity and the change and alignment of the relationships and allocations of roles. Reinvestment in relationships and life pursuits New hopes should be constructed and the life plans to be revised. High risks family using FAAR models This model supports engagement of families in balancing process of the family demands with capabilities of the families being influenced to produce adaptations. The major concepts in the FAAR model are demands, meanings, and capabilities. The adaptations of the family are to produce new functional patterns such as rules, routines, boundaries, and relationships. Families with given levels of assets adapt better to stresses than families with no assets but similar income. Specific methods of studying everyday hassle in families Use of stressors method In this method, the circumstances that possess chances to create problems within the family are critically studied. Use of the mediators of stresses method In this method, the family takes into consideration factors that might alter the occurrence of a stress to the family. Manifestations of stresses methods In this method, the family takes into consideration how to respond quickly to any form of disturbance. Family-responsive workplace This is a situation whereby adaptive measures have been put in place by some employers so as to be responsive to some working parents. Schedules have been made to be flexible and to take into consideration the worker’s preferences .These workplaces collide with the family values. Rutter’s four general protective mechanisms Reduction of negative outcomes by altering the risks In this scenario, there is the suggestion of how to reduce the exposure to risks .Rutter further suggested that additional resources should be used to provide mentorship for children support. Reduction of a negative chain reaction following risk exposure In this scenario, Rutter focused his study on the children gang involvement, dropping out of school and the early teenage pregnancy. Rutters suggested that school dropouts should be provided with part time jobs ,and allowed to attend schools at different hours from the school traditional hours. Establishing and maintaining self-esteem and self-efficiency Self-esteem and self-efficiency can be studied in two different ways. One of the ways of studying self-esteem and efficiency is by having positive interactions with adults and peers. Opening up opportunities In this scenario Rutter suggested that persistency can be fostered when opportunities are offered to students. Increased personal control increases academic self-concept and efforts for achievement of future goals. Walsh’s practice guidelines to strengthen family resilience Practice of convey conviction to overpower adversity from the use of shared efforts. Resilient families should practice conveyed conviction so as to overpower the adversity of the trauma. Use of humble language that tends to humanize and contextualize the distress There should be a decrease in shame and blame on the victim individuals and their views should be listened to. There should be provisions of safe havens for purposes of sharing the pains, fears and the challenges. There should be empathy to the victimize people and mutual support should be provided to them. There should be affirmation and identification of strengths, courage and constraints. Potential for mastery, healing, and growth should be drawn. There should be spiritual resources, kin and community tapping when dealing with the challenges. The crisis should be view as opportunities for change, learning, and growth. There should be a shift of focus of problems to possibilities. The future hopes of the victims should be oriented. Several hot spots for multilevel analysis of resilience and why it is important Resilience can be broadly looked at in terms of the multilevel analysis and the adaptations and changes. For the multilevel analysis, the factors to be considered are the interactions from the gene-environment, development of systems that are adaptive and the roles they play in resilience and reprogramming the adaptive systems to protect development in adversity. The multilevel analysis is important because they help to understand the first resilience research waves. Definitions of terms Ambiguous loss-refers to a loss whose definition is not clear and brings no closure. Boundary ambiguity-refers to the discrepancy observed when the system of the family is looked at internally by a family member and externally by an observer. Ambivalence –refers to the state of possessing simultaneous and conflicting feelings about someone or something. Trauma –refers to the physiological injury or wound caused by an external source. Risk –refers to the potential or chance that the picked activity or actions will results into a loss. Resilience –refers to the tendency of an individual to withstand stress and adversity. Protective processes-these are processes that tend to erase all the harms which an individual or something is bound to interact with in a negative manner. Crises –refers to the time of intense trouble, difficulty or danger or it can also refer a time when crucial or difficult decision is to be made. Work cited Walsh .Strengthening family resilience. New York. Guilford press.2nd edition.2006 pp.10 42.Print Read More