Understanding and assisting Megan Griffiths - Case Study Example

UNDERSTANDING AND ASSISTING MEGAN GRIFFITHS TOPIC: HUMAN GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT SO 2007 Assignment Scenario 2005/6 MEGAN GRIFFITHS Submitted November 23, 2005 Author: Janice Wotherspoon, BSW Abstract Understanding and assisting Megan Griffiths is the goal to be reached by researching, evaluating and choosing the most appropriate of three theories, models approaches or perspectives of human growth and development. The writer has selected the work of Piaget as the model for understanding Ms. Griffith's current status and will identify how this understanding could be of assistance in social work practice with this individual. Human Growth and Development Theory And Application Megan Griffiths is a 27 year old single parent who has 4 children. She has had four different boyfriends since she was aged 13 and has been living on her own since she was 16 years old. Megan's first daughter, Jane was in foster care from birth until the time her mom reached the age of 16. Understanding the situation Megan is in may be easier with some knowledge of the developmental stages that occur during adolescence. It seems that, because her first pregnancies occurred during her teen-age years, one must first have a solid understanding of the state she was in at that time. Along with looking at the actual information provided by Megan herself, the literature can provide a good framework for case planning. Pierno (1995, p-1) has provided some excellent information in her work on adolescent pregnancy. She points out that Freud's concept of adolescence as a time "fraught with strugglea time when the ego is torn between the strong impulses of the id and the restrictions of the super ego. This conflict makes adolescence a time of tremendous stress and turmoil. She goes on to contrast Freud's theories of psychosexual development to Erik Erikson's Psychosocial Theory which takes a broader view of the factors impacting human development. Erikson proposes that all people face a series of developmental tasks but he does not see individuals getting 'stuck' in a phase, as Freud believed. Erikson's theory is that people will rework old issues in the context of certain tasks and then move on. In Megan's situation, having had a total of four children she seems to have initiated the process of 'moving on' by accessing help for a depression that was diagnosed when she was fifteen years old. There appears to have been significant progress in this area in that she accessed training as a nursery nurse and is working part time in a children's play group and nursery. However further research and reflection have led this writer to conclude that Piaget's theory is the most appropriate model for understanding Megan's situation. Piaget's theories about cognitive development (3) through adolescence involve ".movement from concrete to abstract thinking and a decrease in egocentric thought." Pierno (1995, pp. 2-3) points out that "The acquisition of formal reasoning skills allows older adolescents (about age 15) to think about many possible outcomes that do not exist now.An adolescent with formal reasoning skills (with appropriate guidance) could try to think through the full implications of parenting a newborn." Risk taking, part of the normal behavioral development as seen to occur during adolescence may have been the basis for Megan becoming sexually active in her early teens. This is a time when young people typically work at finding ways to "shape their identities, try out new decision making skills, develop realistic assessments of themselves and gain peer acceptance and respect (Ponton, l997; Jesser (1991)" (1995 p-3) Pierno points out that "unfortunately, some of the risks that adolescents pursue may pose a real threat to their health and well being. These include motor vehicle accidents, pregnancy, alcohol and drug abuse and cigarette smoking." CURRENT CASE PLANNING Understanding Megan's early behavior would be helpful in working with her current situation as a 27 year old mother of four children. She continues to suffer from depression and experiences problems with associated with an eating disorder and low self esteem. Megan's low opinion of herself may stem from her belief that single parent families are viewed as being "substandard" by societal standards. A social worker who is cognizant of the fact that Megan's view of herself could be changed in accordance with moving through the stages of development with support and encouragement could help her to become much more positive about life. As Barbara J. Wurzel (l995, p-1) points out "single parent families and their children constitute a rapidly increasing populationandcontrary to popular assumptionthese units provide a viable alternative to nuclear families." This writer believes a case plan for Megan should evolve around a sound understanding of the developmental issues outlined by Piaget. This understanding would precipitate Megan's understanding of her own movement through the stages and possibly assist her in developing a strong and positive sense of herself as a unique and special individual. Along with his or her awareness of developmental stages the social worker who is assigned to Megan's case might also want to subscribe to Wurzel's philosophy that raising children as a s single parent is tough work but "with special effort and the support of individuals, communities and institutions around them, single parent families can be supportive, healthy families in which young people thrive." (1995, p. 2) Throughout her life Megan appears to have been working on tasks Huitt points out have been described by Erikson (2005, p.4) describes as an Ego Crisis. She seems to have been striving to resolve an ego crisis that involves finding intimacy by involving herself with a string of unsuccessful relationships. Now that she has reached the stage of "Young Adulthood" she has the potential to develop strength through her career and significant relations. Her depression in relation to Erikson's theory may be based on feeling that she has failed at the major tasks of finding love and affiliation with others and in particular in her significant relationships with men. Megan has been working through a number of situations typical of being in the Formal Operational Stage defined by Piaget and described in detail by Springston, Shahid - Abdillah and Scott (1997, p. 4) Megan's current state of dissatisfaction or "disequilibrium" may be the point where she is motivated by her social worker to change how she thinks about her life and how she perceives herself. This motivation for "equibrilation by disequilibrium or a perceived discrepancy between an existing scheme and something new" is a logical sequence that could take place according to Piaget's theory of Stage Movement. References Huitt, W., & Hummel, J. (2003) Piaget's Theory of Cognitive Development, Educational Psychology Interactive. Valdosta, GA, Valdosta State University. Retrieved November 23, 2005 from: http://chiron.valdosta.edu/col/cogsys/piaget.html Pierno, Kathryn (2005); Adolescent Development; Santa Cruz, Ca; ReCAPPP, ETR's Resource Center for Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention. Retrieved November 23, 2005 from: http://www.etr.org/recapp/theories/AdolescentDevelopment/index.htm#Piernobio Springston, Timothy; Shahid-Abdillah, Scott, Denise; (1997) Theory of Development Tutorial. World Wide Web. Retrieved November 23, 2005 from: http://www.facultyweb.cortland.edu/ANDERSMI/PIAGET/OPEN/HTML Wurzel, Barbara J; HYG-5291-95; Growing Up in Single Parent Families; Ohio State University Extension Fact Sheet (1995); Retrieved November 23, 2005 from http://ohioline.usu/hyg-fact/5000/5291.html Wurzell THREE HUMAN GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT ISSUES THAT MAY ASSIST IN UNDERSTANDING Megan Griffiths How An Understanding of one of these issues may help social work practice with Megan Demonstrate knowledge of three theories, models, approaches or perspectives of human growth and development and make a link between this knowledge and social work with focus on Megan and not her children. Introduction Megan Griffiths is a 27 year old mother of four children. Since the age 13 Megan has had four boyfriends and she has a child from each of these relationships. It appears that Megan's first child was born when she was 13 or 14 years old as we are told this baby was in put in foster care and then returned to her mother when she was 16 years old. While Megan seems to be managing reasonably well as a parent she has been suffering from depression since she was fifteen years old and is currently being seen regularly by a social worker. By examining three models of human growth and development and focusing on how they may have impacted Megan, this writer will attempt to identify links between the theories and point out how understanding and application of theoretical knowledge could assist in social work practice. Erik Homburger Erikson (1902-1994) sees personality growth and development as a number of periods or stages that extend throughout the life span. According to Erikson "the amount of conflict in each stage determines whether the positive or negative pole is learned." (1, p-1). While many professionals would likely wish to examine family history and childhood patterns in order to accurately assess Megan's situation this information is not available. An examination of the components Erikson outlines in the fifth stage of development (Adolescence: 12 - 18 years) have led to this writer making some links between Megan's life and the traits identified. Erikson cites peer groups as being the adolescent's choice for significant relationships and, in Megan's case her boyfriend was likely the most important source of support. During this stage of development Megan may have felt the choice she made in having a sexual relationship was the ideal way for her to go. However, she was totally unaware that during this period of her life she was still not totally prepared emotionally for the responsibilities of a full time relationship and the responsibilities of being a parent. In the search for identity that all teenagers go through, Megan was likely involved in a great deal of "role confusion" that made it difficult for her to know what she 'really wanted.' Nevertheless she was also going through a period of thinking in terms of 'ideals' and working on the significant task of establishing "a philosophy of life." (1, p-3) References Read More