Life Course Development in Social Work - Coursework Example

Life Course Development on Social Work Life course can be described as an individual’s life since the time he is born to the time he dies, in terms of the relevant historical and social contexts. A life course perspective is the study of aging that involves a combination of the study of the experience of an individual and social structure (Elder, 1998). One cannot carry out social work effectively if he does not understand the different aspects of development in he life of people that he is working with. One of the best ways to understand a people’s human development is to look at it from a life course perspective. This paper will look at the life course perspective on human development. For the purposes of this paper, I will use Gill’s condition as a case in point. Gill, aged 14, has a learning disability. At school she is described as presenting no behaviour problems. However, at home her parents find her behaviour increasingly difficult to manage. When Gill does not ‘get her own way’ she kicks, spits and throws things. Gill often pinches and punches her brother Shaun, aged nine. It is clear that Gill’s behaviour at home is not consistent with her school behaviour. She is a good, quiet student while at school, but she exhibits a completely different side when she is at home. What needs to be established is whether or not her slow learning problem may be the cause of her behaviour at home. There is need to understand first Human development from a life course perspective in order to understand Gill’s situation. Human Development from a Life Course Perspective According to Hunt (2005) there are different but equally fundamental human development principles that characterize the life course approach. These principles include: 1 Socio-historical and geographic location; 2 Timing of lives; 3 Heterogeneity or variability; 4 Social ties; 5 Human agency and personal control; 6 The way the future is shaped by the past; Socio-historical and Geographical Location The events happening in a certain historical period and geographic location in which an individual lives plays a big role in the person’s development path. For instance, if there is a war or economic recession, the individual’s development will be affected by these situations. One of the things that can alter people’s perception is cultural and social ideology in a particular place at a particular time. The choices that people make in the context of the existing social or political ideology will affect the development of an individual in one way or another. For instance a financial recession may force a government to cut on social welfare or salaries, and this will mean that people will have to plan their budgets with the little money that will be getting. Timing of Lives There are three different types of time which play a central role in life course perspective. These are: Historical time, generational time and individual time. Individual time which is also known as ontogenic time is normally used in reference to chronological age. It is generally assumed that different stages of life play a huge role in influencing roles, positions and even rights in the society. Age stages can be classified into childhood, adolescence and adulthood, although these may differ depending on the age definitions in different cultures. Generational time on the other hand is the term used to define different social age groups. For instance, people born during and after the 1980s are commonly known as the dot com generation. Historical time is a reference to how real time large scale events affect individuals and/ or families. Major events that can affect a historical time include wars, technological innovations and economic changes. The historical time today is very different than the historical time that was there some 30 or so years ago. This is due to the life changing internet and economic changes that have occurred in many parts of the world. Heterogeneity or Variability Heterogeneity is the term used to define process or structural diversity in life course. Heterogeneity follows the age stratification model which states that different cohorts or age groups have different experiences. This means that heterogeneity as a life course principle does not support the idea that just because cohorts share an age group, they have to share similar perspectives. Different generations or age groups differ in terms of gender, family structure, social class, religion and ethnicity. Different people adapt to life course change in varying ways, which most of the time depend on the resources and support structure that a person finds himself in. a good example would be the case of a person who does not have strong family ties, who, when faced with difficult financial times, will not return home for help. Linked Lives and Social Ties This life course principle holds that different people’s lives are dependent on each other and that they are interlinked in one way or another. For instance, the experiences of an individual and society at large can be said to be linked through the family, which has a large network of other shared relationships. This means that large scale events, such as wars and recessions have the ability to affect the behaviour of an individual. This behaviour can affect family relationships, and the effects may extend to the whole society. Personality styles of individuals in a family setting can affect the way other family members function, live and cope with different situations. Differing individual goals and needs may be a recipe for tension and even conflict within a family. For instance, conflict in the family may occur when a son or a daughter wants to get married but the parents do not approve of the person their child has chosen to marry. This family tension may thaw over time, but if does not, it may spill over to the rest of the community in which the family lives. Human Agency and Personal Control One perspective of life course is that individuals are seen as individuals who think about how social structure affects them; they also are involved in setting goals that are meant to shape social structure. It is a common assumption that individuals are competent at making plans that influence the choices that they make about social relationships and institutional involvements. However, this pro-active ability to make choices is pegged on constraints as well as opportunities. In other words, an individual will modify his expectations and behaviour to correspond with changes in needs and resources. For instance, if a family or person is facing a tough economic time, he will have to be flexible and work around his expectations so that he can fulfil them with the resources that are available to him. How the Past Shapes the Future Another important perspective of life course is that the course decisions, conditions and opportunities of early life affect later life outcomes. In other words, the past plays a big and vital role in how the present and the future shapes out. It is like the past has a domino effect on the present and future life. This domino effect can occur at the individual or generation level. For instance, if a particular generation is undergoing a tough financial time, the effects of this situation may be felt by later generations. The timing and conditions of past experiences can also have a positive or negative effect on future lives. For instance, a person who experienced domestic violence of one form or another during the civil rights days in the US can reproduce a cycle of violence in his or her later years. Some of the later life outcomes that are normally influenced by past experiences include mental health, economic status, marital patterns and even physical functioning. Understanding this particular principle is very important when trying to deal with social inequality. It also helps in creating effective programs that are meant to positively influence social policy. Gill’s Life Course Development Socio-historical and geographic location: The society today is not very receptive to people with learning disabilities. It is unfortunate that Gill has to live among people who might not understand her condition or even try to help her. This may be the reason why she presents different behaviours while at home and when she is at school. If the society in which Gill lives in does not appreciate persons with disabilities, then it is possible that she goes to school with children from these families. This may have a big impact on her psychology and physical well being (Wolverson, 2006). She probably gets bullied while at school, and since she cannot take her frustrations out on her fellow students, she decides to do it at home, where she is comfortable. Timing of lives: As mentioned earlier, different stages of life play a huge role in influencing roles, positions and even rights in the society (Hunt, 2005). Gill is in her adolescent years. She is just fourteen and probably she is starting to realize for the first time what her role in society is. She is perhaps trying to understand what is expected of her and what is not. Her learning disability condition is making this very difficult for her. It is possible that is the society in which she lives does not appreciate persons with disabilities, they also do not emphasize on the importance of having such people around. If Gill realizes that her age mates are behaving in a certain way so as to fulfil the society’s expectation of them, she might try to do what they are doing. However, if she has to suffer ridicule as she tries to find her rightful place in society, then this may cause a lot of mental and emotional problems for her. Heterogeneity or variability: there are some behaviours that are generally associated with teenagers all across the world. They are known to be enthusiastic about almost everything. This is also the stage where most young people explore different aspects of life (Williams, 2006). Because of her condition, Gill might not be as enthusiastic or adventurous as her age mates. This may make her look odd in the midst of other adolescence. Being different as she is may draw unnecessary attention to her and she may not know how to deal with it. Therefore, she will do what she does when she is agitated: cause tantrums at home. She knows that she is different from other teenagers because of her learning disability. She might think that the disability makes her less important and therefore results to bullying her younger brother to assert her importance (Payne, 2008). Linked lives and social ties: the lives of different people are intertwined and interdependent (Hunt, 2005). Gill’s happiness and high self esteem are dependent on how she is treated by other people. If she feels that she is not free to be herself while at school, then she will not make any move to get noticed. However, while at home, she is bound to get all the attention. At home, her family is there for her and since she knows that she can depend on family for anything, she will waste no time asking for it. Even if means kicking and punching, she will do it because that is the only place where she knows she is well cared for and will be provided with all she wants. This may affect her later life if she does not stop depending on her family for everything that she wants. Human agency and personal control: this principle talks of how people are aware of their different roles in society and how they can contribute to social structure (Hunt, 2005). Gill has some learning disability; therefore, her ability to make decisions that affect social of family structure is somewhat impaired. This makes it difficult for other people, including her family members, to listen to her when she has something to say. This could be the reason why she throws tantrums whenever she does not get her way. May be it is her way of gaining attention so that she can communicate whatever she wants to communicate. She, like all human beings, has a need to feel relevant and useful. When she thinks that she is being ignored, or that no one is paying her any attention, she will get it the best way she knows how: kicking and biting. How the past shapes the future: Gills tantrums may or may not be related with her past experiences. However, if she had some negative experience in the past, it could be possible that she is acting the way she is because of that experience. The most obvious situation in this case is abuse by someone who was close to her. However, the experience does not have to be a negative one. It could be that she is used to getting whatever she wants by kicking, biting and beating. If her family members, particularly parents, always give in to her demands, she must have got used to it and that is why she only acts up while she is at home. She knows for sure that her mother and father will not refuse her anything. If her parents have never tried to discourage this behaviour before, then, that could be the reason why it seems unmanageable now. Social Work Social work is all about working with, understanding and helping different members of community (Mortimer & Shanahan, 2003). Understanding life course on different aspects of human development will go a long way in enabling a social worker carry out his duties to Gill and her family much more efficiently. It is quite clear that Gill can do with as much help as she can get both from home and from school. After understanding Gills development from a life course perspective, working with her and her family will become much easier. It will make it easy to formulate plans that will help Gill and her family learn to deal her condition without necessarily causing any more problems. Gill’s behavioural problems at home are not actually normal, and something has to be done so that this behaviour does not get worse than it already is. One of the problems that Gill might be facing is the inability of understanding her situation. A social worker who understands life course perspective will find a way of helping Gill come to terms with her learning disability. She will be able to understand that being different is not necessarily a bad thing and that she should not feel bad about herself (Cook, et al., 1997 and Payne, 2008). The social worker should also try and get Gill’s family to understand her condition so that they can create a conducive environment for Gill. Since Gill does not show any kind of erratic behaviour while at school, it means that there is something about the school environment which keeps her calm. It could be that she is afraid of being bullied or laughed at by other students. In any case she is at a crucial stage in her life, and therefore can be affected by the slightest provocation (Williams, 2006). Therefore it is the social worker’s duty to find out what exactly happens at school to make Gill calm and non-violent. A heart to heart talk with Gill is likely to shed light on why she acts the way she does at home. She can also explain why she only acts up while at home and not while at school. Once the social worker has got to the bottom of the matter, it is up to him to come up with a plan on how to best help Gill (Mortimer & Shanahan, 2003). If the problem lies with the kind of treatment that she gets from school, the social worker should take necessary measures to ensure that Gill is not mistreated by students or teachers. If the problem is at home, the social worker needs to have a serious talk with Gill’s parents and siblings. if need be, he should make some suggestions that will improve Gill’s life so that she does not have to cause tantrums every now and again. Most families are overprotective over other family members who may have any form of disability (Wolverson, 2006). Maybe Gill is reacting to this over-protectiveness because it irritates or annoys her. Her family needs to know that Gill has her own personal needs, and they should consider what she wants and not force things on her. The social worker who understands life course perspective should be in a position to enlighten the family members on the need to listen to Gill so that she does not behave erratically when she feels she is being ignored. Community education is also necessary if people are to understand Gill’s condition, and the condition of other people who are like her (Cook, et al., 1997). They need to be told that Gill is not different from other kids, she just has different capabilities. Therefore she should not be treated with scorn or malice just because she has a learning disability. The society should be encouraged to support people like Gill who have disabilities so that they can live harmoniously with other people. Conclusion Any person with learning disability faces a lot of challenges as he grows up. The challenges include exclusion from society at large (Hunt, 2005). When a person with disability is made to feel inferior by those without the disability, it can impact on the individual’s self esteem. Therefore it is important to understand the development of a person with a disability from a life course perspective. This understanding will help the social worker get to the bottom of the problem and create some practical social programs that will make the society a conducive place for any person to live in. As Elder (1998) says, in understanding the life course perspective of human development, the social worker will be in a position to prevent any undesirable behaviour from advancing to a worse stage than it already is. In the case of Gill, the social worker only needs to understand Gill’s life so as to come up with a solution to the erratic behaviour she presents at home. References Cook, J.A, Cohler B. J., Pickett, S.A and Beeler, J.A. Life-Course and Severe Mental Illness: Implications for Care giving Within the Family of Later Life. 1997, vol. 46, pp.427-436. http://www.jstor.org/pss/585102 Elder, G.H, 1998, The life Course as Developmental theory, Society for Research in Child Development Jounal, vol. 69, No.1. pp. 1-12. Viewed 3 June 2010, http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/121390070/abstract?CRETRY=1&SRETRY=0 Hunt, Stephen, J. The Life Course: A Sociological Introduction. March, 2005. http://us.macmillan.com/thelifecourse Mortimer, J and Shanahan, M., 2003, Handbook of the Life Course, Viewed 3 June 2010, http://www.google.co.ke/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=6&ved=0CDAQFjAF&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.springer.com%2Fsocial%2Bsciences%2Fbook%2F978-0-387-32457-9&ei=J8cHTN61KtSJ_gaEo_3gDw&usg=AFQjCNH2ZUY2xwLrtz7GuJFM54WKagy3oA Payne, M. 2008. Social Care Practice in Context, Viewed 3 June 2010, http://us.macmillan.com/socialcarepracticeincontext Williams, P., 2006, Social Work with People with Learning Difficulties (Transforming Social Work Practice), Viewed 3 June 2010, http://www.amazon.co.uk/Social-Learning-Difficulties-Transforming-Practice/dp/1844450422 Wolverson, M, 2006, Causes of Challenging Behavior in People with a Learning Disability, Viewed 3 June 2010, http://www.naidex.co.uk/page.cfm/link=114 Read More