Steps of and Professional Development - Personal Statement Example

Developmental Case Study In this article I will develop a short case study that focuses on me and my next stage of personal and professional development. This would be related to the organization that I am associated with, namely as a school counselor in San Diego middle school and I would try to show the relationship between my own personal development and my work as a counselor in the school considering published studies, developmental theories and my own life experiences. Introduction: The basis of the discussion will be at least two developmental theories that would help analyze the anticipated developmental strengths, weaknesses, observations, threats, and challenges that may be encountering as a result of change in my personal and professional life. Considering two theoretical models and developmental theories the developmental challenges could be highlighted with research findings related to social, biological, emotional and cognitive development. Understanding the social and emotional aspects of development would be as important as understanding the other environmental or biological factors and how these affect overall development of an individual. In this case particularly my development as a father and as a [professional would be examined within the social, environmental, emotional and biological context. Developmental Theories, Stages, Challenges The developmental challenges are shown considering contemporary developmental theories and the social and emotional aspects of development within this specific case study are also considered. The perspective here is from my own. I am a 28 year old African American male and I live in California, working for a San Diego middle school where I work as a counselor. I have never married but I have two children and life experiences have taught me some valuable lessons that have aided in my own development and in this article I will relate my own experiences as a father and counselor and try to focus on the social and emotional contexts to show how the different developmental stages of my life have affected me. The two perspectives that can be drawn up here would include attachment and emotion theories in understanding social needs and psychoanalytic / psychological approaches for developmental stages of life. I will focus on how these two developmental theories fit in within my case and how the professional or personal development of a counselor in a middle school could be explained with the help of such theories and perspectives. Consedine and Magai (2003) carried on studies that delineated the patterns of attachment of children and young adults and highlighted that more attention should be given to the concept of lifespan development. Bowlby's claim to the attachment theory has implications for an entire lifespan and shows the relations between attachment and emotions in older adults. In this study by Consedine and Magai(2003) , a sample of 1118 adults completed measures of attachment on differential emotions scale and different dimensions of attachment were related to different emotions. With more attachment to people or particular tasks, there would be less feelings of guilt or shame or contempt and more happiness. However less attachment would also imply less joy. Avoidance has been associated with anxiety in a situation and the life or young and the old tend to show similar patterns of attachment-emotions relations although there may be some developmental differences. The developmentalist- functionalist theories of emotions bring out the implications on how emotions function in attachment systems and how they drive social relations across the lifespan of an individual (Consedine and Magai, 2003). This would have direct relations with this particularly case study as a 28 year old father of two and school professional would also be shaped by his different emotions and attachment and this would define his interactions, professional as well as personal relationships. Thus through the developmental stages I have developed as a boy to a nonconformist adult and then to a responsible father and a school professional where I have placed emphasis on helping school children and their families with personal problems. One of the major attributes of older adulthood would be related to attachments and Cookman (2005) tries to describe the critical attributes of attachment and specifies the consequences of attachment in adulthood. Being the father of two children and a counselor I have to strike a fine balance between attachment and detachment with attachment at the personal level with minimal attachment at the professional level where I have to learn to be empathetic yet strive not to become too attached to a student or parent seeking consultation. A fine balance of emotions would thus be expected from a counselor who is also a father and this would be one of the major developmental challenges that I would face in this situation. Attachment applies to all developmental stages of a lifespan and a study of attachment shows how close relationships and attachment can be beneficial to one's personal health. Does the fact that I have two children add to my personal health and happiness Attachment is opposed to fear of loneliness or challenging situations that are often faced by older adults, yet at my age this may not be the case as I would have no unfounded fears or fear of loneliness. An unconscious fear of losing my children may lead to more attachment and would be a sort of developmental challenge at this stage. Attachment behaviour as Cookman (2005) defines is characterized by proximity to the attached object or person, protests on separation and presence of a secure base with opportunities for environmental and social interaction. The potentially negative impact of attachment and separation would help understand health transitions if any, especially among very old adults and would also help in bringing about a high level of well being. The concept of identity formation and especially ethnic identity would be an important aspect of development. I am an African male living in California and this part of San Diego is primarily dominated by the white population so my ethnic identity formation is also an important aspect of my own development and my life experiences. The developmental achievement of self and an ethnic group could also have negative implications and lead to identity diffusion as when a person emigrates to a new country there may be several challenges encountered in the ethnic identity formation and this may hinder the ongoing identity formation process (Mann, 2006). The ethnic identity is also shaped by parental attitudes and apart from my own development, the identity formation of my two children would also be of particular concern considering that they have my roots as well. There may be intra-psychic conflicts as well as environmental conflicts dealing with racism and prejudice that further interferes with identity formation (Mann, 2006). This may pose a struggle through the developmental life stages and would be reflected in the way I see the world as well as bring up my children or work within my professional environment. Has ethnicity been an important aspect of my personal development and how has this affected my personal and professional life This is answered with the help of psychological and social theories of attachment and also through psychoanalysis to suggest how childhood experiences could have shaped my own understanding of the world. Conclusion: From a rebellious boy to a responsible father to an empathetic counselor, what would be my next stage of professional and personal development as we pass through the different stages of life This question could be answered by considering what my immediate and future goals in life are. I would like to continue counseling and helping young men and women to achieve what they want in life and also help them overcome their difficulties while at school. Understanding the needs of other individuals even better would help me reach the next stage of professional development and this in turn would also help me to reflect on my own life so that I can take on the responsibilities of a father, a counselor and a citizen in a proper way. This in fact lead to the formation of what has been called a subjective self (Fonagy et al, 2007) or rather a person whom I see from my perspective and I define according to my needs, desires and orientations. Bibliography CONSEDINE N.;MAGAI C. (2003) Attachment and emotion experience in later life: The view from emotions theory Attachment & Human Development, Volume 5,Number 2, pp. 165-187(23) Cookman, Craig (2005) Attachment in older adulthood: concept clarification Journal of Advanced Nursing, Volume 50,Number 5, pp. 528-535(8) Fonagy, Peter;Gergely, George;Target, Mary (2007) The parent-infant dyad and the construction of the subjective self Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines, Volume 48, Numbers 3-4, pp. 288-328(41) Mann, Mali (2006) The formation and development of individual and ethnic identity: insights from psychiatry and psychoanalytic theory The American Journal of Psychoanalysis, Volume 66,Number 3, pp. 211-224(14) Sneed, Joel;Hamagami, Fumiaki;McArdle, John;Cohen, Patricia;Chen, Henian (2007 ) The Dynamic Interdependence of Developmental Domains Across Emerging Adulthood Journal of Youth and Adolescence, Volume 36,Number 3, pp. 351-362(12) Van Nijnatten, Carolus (2006) FINDING THE WORDS: SOCIAL WORK FROM A DEVELOPMENTAL PERSPECTIVE Journal of Social Work Practice, Volume 20,Number 2, pp. 133-144(12) Read More