Discussing Differences While Working With a Family During Systematic Therapy - Case Study Example

Discussing Differences working with a Family By 14th, November The Family Case Introduction In one family case, a 16-year-old girl was suspended from school after one of the class representatives found marijuana in her locker. The incident was reported to the principal. It was agreed that the suspension was the best decision since the girl was also having concentration difficulties and depressive signs. According to the school board, the girl was also involved in various cases of misbehaviours. Thus, her disadvantages in school outweighed the benefits. That is why she was suspended, and the parents were recommended to see a family therapist who could help their child get the appropriate treatment for drug abuse and learning disorders. The aim of this paper is to discuss a family problem that was caused by various aspects of difference in gender, age, and cultural practices among the family members. In addition, the family systemic theory is discussed as the recommendable therapy for solving such a family case. When the case was taken to the family therapist, the systemic therapy was applied. The therapist also realized that the family had moved to their current location as immigrants. Therefore, an integrative approach was advocated. All the family members especially the parents were affected immensely since they had other difficulties too like adapting in a new environment. They also feared deportation. Her class teacher reported that at times the girl could engage in verbal insults, classmate’s harassment, avoidance of class work, was sometimes rude to teachers, and hostile. Some other times, she was very disciplined, and this change in mood led to teachers and class representatives have the desire to investigate what was going on in this girl’s life. Sun & Shek (2012) suggest that misbehaviours in the classroom not only retard the effectiveness and smoothness of teaching, but also hinder with the learning of other students and his or her studies. Therefore, the teachers felt that these frequent to infrequent misbehaviours were provoking stress among students and teachers, were intolerable, and most of their energy and time was used to manage her. According to the school’s rules and regulations, this was a disciplinary problem. The girl’s family was composed of five members, father, mother, older brother, and young sister. Since they had moved to a new place, the father worked for many hours to secure a good house and had no time for his kids. The mother, on the other hand, was left at home doing the housework. From the therapist’s research, the elder brother was in university and was also a drug addict. He was the one that introduced the habit to his smaller sister. According to these two, they were abusing drugs to cope with difficulties of discrimination because of their skin colour and adaptation on new habits and cultural values. Moreover, the girl was made to help with household duties after school since this is what they were used to before relocating. This led to unbearable pressure on her since it was becoming difficult to engage in both activities. Therefore, the only escape was to consume bhang and other hard drugs. The parents were also holding opposing ideas on how to adapt to the new life with the father advocating new changes while the mother supported the children to go on with old values and beliefs. As a result, the children were stressed since they did not know on whose side to follow. The contributing factors Culture Culture was the common contributor to the problems experienced in this family. Since this family had migrated to the United Kingdom not so many months ago, they experienced multiple stresses that affected their emotional and mental stability. In addition, they lost their previous cultural norms, social support systems, and religious customs. Moreover, their identity and view on themselves had to change, and they had to adjust to new cultural value and changes (Park 2010). Therefore, they felt unacceptable to the majority culture due to discrimination they experienced in various places especially at school, felt isolated from their culture, felt alienated, and rejected. For this reason, the girl and the elderly brother‘s self esteem was affected so much to the point of using these drugs to boost their self esteem. Language differences also led to a strain since their communication was hindered thus adjusting to the school environment was a problem. Racial discrimination was a problem too. The disparities between the socio cultural norms in the United Kingdom and the country they originated from heightened the teenager’s vulnerability to substance use. Acculturation also contributed to the substance use due to the interaction with peers who consumed such drugs too. According to Park (2010), acculturation occurs when groups of people with different cultural values come into contact, leading to a change in their cultural patterns or a change in both cultural values of both groups. Therefore, acculturation leads to acculturative stress in teenagers and in adults (Park 2010). As a result, it can lead to substance abuse. As a teenager, parents had to support her emotionally but they did not. The reason is that it was taboo discussing sexuality matters with her. The father also could not talk to his daughter about her changing body, since according to the cultural patterns in his country of origin; men were not allowed to talk to their daughters anything to do with sexuality. Furthermore, boys were not allowed to interact with girls openly. This was experienced in their current origin and led to mixed reactions in the family with the parents cautioning her never to do so. Gender and age Equal numbers of girls and boys present depressive signs before adolescent. According to Minuchin and Fishman (2009), about ten to fifteen percent of almost all children report mildly to severe signs that are related to depression. At around the age of thirteen, the percentage changes with twice as many girls reporting signs of depression. This proportion continues into adult life with women in greater risk of developing depression. Depressive symptoms can lead to an individual dependence on hard drugs to deal with with the symptoms (Nelson, O’Brien, Calkins, Blankson, and Keane n.d). The opposite is also true. An individual who abuses drugs can develop depressive symptoms. Multiple factors interact to cause the disparity in gender differences based on depression and substance abuse. These factors are such as biological, psychosocial, family and genetic factor (Burns 2010). In this case, the girl was sixteen thus was at the stage of adolescence. Therefore, we can say that both environmental and biological factors led to drug abuse habit. Cultural issues, family problems, hormonal changes, negative life events, and gender issues are more likely to be the cause of her behaviour. Her behaviour affected the whole family. The parents feared being deported back to their country of origin. At this age, hormonal levels fluctuate indefinitely and might cause mood and emotions levels to fluctuate too. Although there is no evidence showing that hormonal fluctuations cause depression, researchers suggest that hormones affect the brain chemistry. Girls and boys view puberty differently. Both genders experience biological and social changes simultaneously although girls develop at rates that are different individually. Depressed mood and self-conscious feelings are associated with girls who mature earlier as compared to others of the same age (Minuchin et al. 2009). Menstruation can also lead to feelings of loss, tension, and irritability for girls thus leading to drug abuse to cope with these physical and behavioural changes in their lives. Moreover, they get increased fat layers that are perceived as negative in many societies around the world especially in the world of today. Boys view body changes as positive aspects. In this case, the girl was fat and felt negative about it because her classmates wanted nothing to do with her, especially the slim ones. In her country of origin, beauty was attributed to fat layers in women. Consequently, she had difficulties coping with this change of perception. The disappointment with her appearance led to her developing low esteem and thus she engaged in hostile misbehaviours as defence mechanisms. When they came to UK, she realized that girls were brought up in a different way from the traditional upbringing she was used to. In her country of origin, sex roles of girls were very different from those of boys, with the girls place being in the kitchen. Seeing that girls in UK had all the power to do whatever role they pleased shocked her. Her mum who was a conservative also practiced the same old cultural practices like engaging her with excessive housework. In addition, she had no one to talk to about her emotional problems since the father was busy working, and mum could not discuss sexual topics because it was a taboo in her country of origin. To cope with all these difficulties, she sorts some relieve from bhang and alcohol instead of developing positive strategies that could help her adapt well. Family systems theory as a framework for understanding family problems Systems theory can be defined as a study of the complex systems that exist in science, nature, and society (Minuchin et al., 2009) Systems theory framework explores and explain any object that work together as a group to generate a result. Thus, it is commonly used in the family setting because it addresses problems in a contextual framework rather than on an individual basis. Barnes (2010) suggests that a family therapist should create a welcoming and safe space in which immigrants can be helped out emotionally, mentally, financially, and physically. Theorists who specialise with family systems view the family as a collection of behaviours and relationships that are organized in a certain manner. Members of the family are also separated by various boundaries that form subsystems. Therefore, there is a believe that other members of the family influence each subsystem or individual. Dr. Murray Bowen argued that the family can be said to be an emotional division thus an individual can only be understood in the aspect of his or her family (Burns 2010). In addition, independent and interconnected individuals form family systems, therefore, the systems and individuals cannot be understood in isolation (Burns 2010). In a family system, all members have roles to play, and there are rules that govern the system and should be respected by each member. Relationships within the family system determine how members respond to each other (Nelson et al., n.d). The behaviour of one family member can be caused by behaviours of others, and in turn can cause certain behaviours on other family members, thus creating patterns within the family boundaries. The family maintaining certain behaviours within the systems can cause dysfunction and stability (Burns, 2010). Family therapy has interconnection with multicultural treatment. Cultural issues define what a family is. The relationships, roles, and rules within the family can differ among and between cultures. Every family has various cultural expectations and these expectations play a big role in the family relationships and group experiences. In addition, part of our self-concept is influenced by our ethnic heritage. The beliefs and attitudes that each family member hold vary from individual to individual and can also be shaped by the ethnic heritage (Park 2010). Ignoring ethical and ethnic guidelines in a family therapy session might offend individual members, offend the family, or may influence the original problem that brought the family to their therapy (Park 2010). Every family is composed of a structure, and this structure is influenced by beliefs that are culturally determined. It is important for a family therapist to first of all determine whether their clients’ family structure is problematic (Park 2010). There is a variation of what a family is, from different cultures. Family dynamics and roles vary widely across various cultures. Moreover, even single-family systems can experience cultural variation within the group. Therefore, it is important for the counsellor to recognize intergenerational issues within the family to ensure effective relationships within the family members, which is the key goal of family systems therapy. The multicultural and family perspective in psychotherapy and counselling share a premise that can only be understood from a larger context rather than from a particular individual, for example, culture or family that shapes an individual. Thus, family counselling must address and evaluate cultural issues during sessions. In this case, the therapist should encourage the family to abandon the old cultural practices that have a negative impact on all individuals and help them towards assimilation for healthy adaptation (Minuchin et al., 2009).The family should, therefore, be helped to come up with alternative, positive, and mutually acceptable strategies for coping with their difficulties. In addition, the parents should be encouraged to have time for their children and talk to them. The mother should also be assisted in finding a job so that she can give a hand in family expenses. An understanding of the cultural issues that dreg them backwards should be created and promoted among the family members. Effective communication should also be enhanced during sessions, and this would help each family member during transition from old cultural practices to new ones. This means that family therapy can be done in a multicultural setting, and on the other hand, when offering family counselling, the therapist should be aware of different culture variations among the family members, and him too. In a multicultural context, the therapist is mandated to be aware of his or her own worldview and frame of reference (Park 2010) The therapist should also help the two children seek treatment for drug abuse and help them towards recovery. The parents should also be involved in supporting their children. Gender differences in and out families create different expectations in regard to roles designed for each individual. Gender roles can become stressing for women if they are defined by patriarchy (Nelson et al., n.d). In this family, the members should be helped to come up with valued ways that would help them shift gender roles in a way that no one would be hurt. For example, the elder brother should be encouraged to assist with household chores. This should be framed in a positive way to promote a change. The mother should also be supported take on roles that are assigned for men with no difficulties, like working out of home. The therapist should also be gender sensitive. (Barnes 2004) “when considering family issues using a life cycle or developmental perspective, the complexity and inbuilt inequalities in the lives of many families means that the therapist have to position themselves in relation to each family’s particular life challenges and family resources” (71). As someone of the age of 26, I might see the problem as caused by the adolescent age the girl is in. At this age, she is experiencing emotional, physical, and even mental changes in her life. Thus, parental advice and effective communication should be enhanced. In addition, she might be abusing a substance to fit in with a certain group, to forget discrimination in school and restrictions at home. Thus, the parents should try not to restrict her from having friends, but should talk to her on how to choose good friends. In addition, parents responsibility to know the kind of friends their kids have. The parents should also give the child some freedom since it is the time she is trying to develop an identity. The parents might be thinking that their child is behaving in such a manner because they are undisciplined, but that might not be case because social, familial, biological, and environmental factors interact to contribute to such behaviours. For example, many children today have been exposed to various cultures through exposure to influences outside and school attendance. However, their parents are somehow tied to their origin. Thus, their generations vary significantly. On the other hand, as someone from a cultural background that embraces changes in cultural patterns, I would recommend this family to accept that culture is dynamic and always changing, and strive towards assimilation. They should accept that things have now changed and go on with life. A girl interacting with boys is not a bad thing. All they should do is engage their children in sex education. Gender roles based on traditional cultural practices should be abandoned and strive for gender equality in the family. As a therapist working in such a setting I must have appropriate knowledge of how to realize and negotiate these interfamilial differences in culture, gender, and age because different generational gap can be the cause of lack of understanding and frustration between members of the family. In addition, I must be aware of the generational gap between the child, the parents, and me since these differences can influence the therapeutic outcome in a negative or positive way. Therefore, it is important for me as a therapist to discuss these gender roles and cultural differences with the family members and creates awareness about their importance among and within the family members. Each member is also encouraged to understand the worldviews of others. Various theories suggest that different individuals respond differently to therapy, because they come from different cultures, are of different age and have different gender perspectives. For more effective and smoother therapy, the family counsellor ought to take into consideration his or her client’s cultural biases, traditions, age differences, and gender differences. References Barnes, G 2004, Family therapy in changing times (2nd ed.), Palgrave Macmillan: Basingstoke, Hampshire. Burns, G 2010, Happiness, healing, enhancement: Your casebook collection for applying positive psychology in therapy, Wiley: Hoboken, NJ. Minuchin, S, & Fishman, H 2009, Family therapy techniques, Harvard University Press: Cambridge, Mass. Nelson, J, O’Brien, M, Blankson, A, Calkins, S, & Keane, S n.d, Family stress and parental responses to children’s negative emotions: Tests of the spillover, crossover, and compensatory hypotheses. Journal of Family Psychology, 671-679. Park, H 2010, Acculturative Stress and Mental Health of Korean Women Living in UK, The Journal of the Korea Contents Association, 308-316. Sun, C, F, R, & Shek, T, L, D 2012, Student Classroom Misbehavior: An Exploratory Study Based on Teachers Perceptions, 208-907. Retrieved from http://www.hindawi.com/journals/tswj/2012/208907/ Read More