Asking the question of “why” is often a common question. You may ask your child “why” their grades are dropping. You may ask your spouse “why” when he/she appears to be distant You may ask you friend “why” he/she stays in an abusive relationship. Sometimes, we will never know the reason to “why”, but we may be able to help understand and describe the change. To do this we will utilize the rich history of theoretical perspectives and empirical evidence. Practice theories assist professionals understand the cause underlying a presenting problem (Langer & Lietz, 2015). Theory is often described as a set of ideas, assumptions or a framework used to explain phenomena (Hicks, 2016). Social work theories are general explanations that are …show more content…
Practice models offer the greatest degree of direction and are the easiest to evaluate and practice (Langer & Lietz, 2015). While it is the easiest to evaluate it tends to be limited to certain populations and is not applicable across all practice settings. An example of this would be, solution-focused brief therapy and motivational interviewing. (Langer & Lietz, 2015)
Application of theories to micro practice
System theory focuses on how the person interacts with their environment and how the family systems affect the individual across the lifespan (Langer & Lietz, 2015). This theory also emphasizes the relationships among individuals, groups, organizations, or communities and mutually influencing factors in the environment. This is useful in practice as it can develop a holistic view of persons-in-environment and can be useful to understand the family system (Wirth, 2009).
While completing field work with Child Protection Service (CPS) I often needed to understand the home environment and the environment of the child. Not just who was mom and dad, but who was a part of this child’s circle. Was there an after-school program, babysitter, sport team, church? Was there a family friend that was always in the home, a roommate? Was the child being bullied, talking to a counselor? Did the child talk to a specific teacher or neighbor? Who were this child’s friends and siblings? Understanding these systems and how they interacted with my client and their family was
The systems Perspective sees human behavior as the outcome of interactions within and among systems with interrelated and interdependent parts; as defined by its boundaries. Changing one part of the system affects other parts and the whole system, with predictable patterns of behavior (Hutchinson, 2015). The family system has been a widely used theory of family interventions and assessment. The family systems theory is focused on the family dynamic, involving structures, roles, communication patterns, boundaries, and power relation (Rothbaum, 2004). Many theorist such as Bowen, developed the systems theory that focuses on how a
Systems theory sees the system as a set of related components that work together in a particular environment to perform specific functions that are required of them to achieve the system’s objective (Walker, 2012). Most people are part of a variety of systems and subsystems. For example, a family is seen as a system in itself but each member of the family may have different subsystems, such as their peers, education, job, recreational activities, etc. and all of these subsystems play a role in the functioning of the system being examined. Applied theorists of systems theory see the system as goal-seeking and when they discuss a problem within the system, it doesn’t necessarily mean that something is wrong but rather that the situation needs to be better understood and a solution to be found and implemented for the system to continue operating smoothly (2012).
Theories are ideas from which we seek to understand social work, clients, environment and how they are interconnected. Theories lay the groundwork for us to understand human nature, our experiences, perceptions, feelings, thinking and behaviors. Theories give us something to build on and allow us to shift perceptions and thinking, to seek to understand others in terms of their experiences and not our own. Theory and research go hand in hand as research allows us to test out those theories and assess the effectiveness and accurateness of said frameworks. Our professional knowledgebase is built upon theory and research as this how we determine how to best meet the needs of the populations we are trying to assist and it is also how we identify
Systems perspective, “sees human behavior as the outcome of reciprocal interactions of persons operating within linked social systems” (Hutchison, 2013). In other words, an individual’s behavior is greatly influenced by the systems to which he/she belongs to. Using the systems perspective to evaluate the Waldhart family was useful, because it revealed just how interconnected the family member’s lives are. For example, Shelby’s parents have allowed her to live at home for her first three years of college. This in turn has made it possible for her to work her way through college with minimal debt compared to most of her peers. Systems perspective is also categorized by analyzing family boundaries. An example of this is
Family System Theory (FST) is defined as a social unit in which each member of the family cannot be understood in isolation from one another, but rather as a part of their family (Family System Theory, n.d.). Consequently, In order to be a system, the behavior of each family member should be in a pattern as well as repetitive. However, all family systems are unique; in conjunction with differentiation among individuals in each family. Equilibrium in a family system is maintaining the same patterns and behaviors, disruption results in imbalance. In order to maintain homeostasis each family member must enforce their role.
I think that the Family System Theory and the Ecological System Theory are two important basic beliefs about children, families, and family involvement. The system in the family system theory is a system of people connected together and if one part isn’t working things fall apart.
There are three systems that make up the Systems Theory Framework. The first is individual influences, which includes factors such as an individual’s religious beliefs, their gender and their physical and/or mental health.
According to (Langer & Lietz, 2014), using theories in social work practice insures a properly supported intervention for the clients. Theory use if important in social work practice because it prevents the clinician from making decisions on his or her own feelings and emotions, but rather based on his or her own competency of research knowledge. Thus, referring to one’s own experience based emotions may not be beneficial to clients who have not had the same experiences. This is due to the diverse client population that social workers encounter. Therefore, social worker’s professional knowledge base should be imbedded with theoretical material to prove their intervention (Langer & Lietz, 2014). The main theories implemented in the three field practicum projects were systems theory, cognitive behavioral theory, social learning theory and narrative theory.
In contrast, System Theory focuses on the emotional state of people in the family unit. Its focal point is entails individual's emotional state, and how it affects the rest of the family and society. It states that a family is a group of related elements, who interact in pattern and have boundaries. The family system acts as a whole, but each of the members has their rules and behaviors that need adherence. Members of the family are free to form sub systems within the family or with other members of society (Rabstejnek and
Systems theory was proposed in the 1940s by the biologist Ludwig von Bertalanffy (General Systems Theory, 1968). Systems theory describes human behavior in terms of complex systems. It is premised on the idea that an effective system is based on individual needs, rewards, expectations, and attributes of the people living in the system. According to this theory, families, couples, and organizations’ members are directly involved in resolving a problem even if it is an individual issue. System theories emphasizes reciprocal relationships between the elements that constitute a whole. These concepts also emphasize the relationships among individuals, groups, organizations, or communities and mutually influencing
Theory keeps being the guideline and explanation of human behaviors that have been observed in social practice, while it is also utilized by social workers to develop interventions (Sherr, 2007). It consists of concepts that can be combined together to explain phenomenon and even predict human behaviors or other events, in which way, certain hypothesis or assumptions will be validated (Rogers, 2013). Social workers who follow the theory to analyze human interactions in real world benefit from the systematic structure behind the phenomenon and become not satisfied with staying on
Households started out with mothers staying home to take care of their children; now households have both parents working or are single-parent households. With that in mind, working mothers are less likely to physically and emotionally attend to their child’s needs and the consequence of their neglect is that their child becomes more susceptible to lower cognitive development, especially during the ages of 0-3. On top of that, neglect prevents an interactive environment for a child to learn. Social networks besides from home can be influential in a negative or positive way, but a home acts like a safety net to help steer confuse and lost individuals out of harm. Families are the first social network a child has; positive social networks can create a second home to a child, but a negative social network can isolate a child or slow their psychological, social, and cognitive development.
interested in systems in general; family systems theory is an extension of this branch .
According to Graham (2011) theories are essential to a healthy scientifically oriented study. Ravitch & Riggan (2012) suggest that theory describes the cause for the way things work and how relationships are identified and tested. Theory appears to be the map of the main elements that determine an outcome and the relationship between the causative factors. Graham (2011) describes the “why” of theory as identifying the influences and concepts, while considering “how” the elements in the theory are related. Theory expresses “why” the factors and associations merit relate in the larger context.
System theory helps look at the various system a client may be a part of and see how the systems influence a person’s behavior and thoughts. System theory evaluates a person in the environment. Roberta is with depression, but her system help contributes to her depression. Roberta’s family system is going through the death of a loved one and responsibility of care has been bestowed to Roberta with little help. Roberta’s housing system is increasing in rent causing money stress, and her not being able to be with her support system due to financial stress. Roberta is isolated from the systems that help with her mental health due to money restriction but is reluctant to move to less expensive housing because she would be leaving her community. Roberta is involved in the community by being on the Board of Directors of the City Library, and she says that it gives her pleasure in involvement. To make sure Roberta’s recovery, there is work to fix barriers with her