Structural Functional And Social Theories Of My Family

To get a full understanding of family theory one must first have the understanding of what is theory. Theory is a systematic collection of concepts and relations. Family however can mean a broad range of things to a person. One person may consider family to be father, mother, sister and brother; however, to someone else family could be just one parent with one child; and to another it could their friends. Family systems theory however defines the family as a system. Family consist of interrelated parts, each impacting the other and adding to each other’s growth (or detriment) of the other. And because family is always changing, growing, self-organizing, and becoming accustomed to each other and the exterior environment (White & Klein, 2008). Now let’s take a look at the

Structure, “something arranged in a definite pattern of organization” (Merriam-Webster, 2016) Most people are exposed to structure from the beginning. The child's first example of structure is understanding family structure. Your mother is usually the first tier supervisor; she sets the rules on meal times, play times, and rest times. What is more, If you don’t follow the instructions given; you may receive some type of discipline. If the child / employee does not respond to the first line supervisor; eventually, the issues are then moved up the to the next level of management the father / manager. Indeed, Wait until your father gets home” or wait until the manager gets here.

The word family has changed so much in the past century. A family back in the 1950’s was probably considered a husband, wife, and one or more children. Times have changed and families have become much different. The Interpersonal Communication: Relating to Others book defines family as a, “Unit made up of any number of persons who live in relationship with one another over time in a common living space who are usually, but not always, united by marriage and kinship” (Beebe, Beebe & Redmond, 243). Families can be broken up into five different types. The first is the traditional family, which includes a mother, father, and their biological children. Next, is the blended family which includes

Everyone's experiences with it are different, some are favourable, and some are fallacious. Everyone has it, but no one’s family is synonymous. Family is strong and sacrosanct, but strange. The understanding of family varies between people and their personal experiences. In the play Only Drunks and Children Tell The Truth(ODACTTT) by Drew Hayden Taylor, one sees family defined in several legitimate but different ways.

Comparing Bowen’s family systems theory and Minuchin’s structural family theory we will outline several fundamental categories for analysis with Goldenberg & Goldenberg (2012) as our guide. We also contrast the history and theoretical orientation of both men to garner a deeper understanding of their theories. Finally we will consider integrating elements of both theories and how this makes us more effective practitioners.

A family is seen as a group of people who are biologically or psychologically related. They connect on historical, emotional

I knew college was going to change me in many ways. Yet, after my family and I restructured our collective and individual emotional reactivity over the three years that I was away at school, I believed my work in that department was done. I thought transiting into college was difficult, however, I found myself once again unprepared for the aftershock that rocked my family once I return from school. I left college a strong, independent, mature, and differentiated person, or at least I kind of did.

Depending on their cultural background, many families will often have different understandings or ideas of what a family is and how it should be structured.

A traditional family is no longer considered the norm amongst a typical family structure. Many family structures consist of the nuclear family, single parent household, lesbian/gay family, childless family, grandparent family, and stepfamily. Each family is made distinctive, develops at different stages, and deals with family issues. Family development theory is used to help families deal with issues and how to handle them in different stages of development. Issues within the family can be caused by a numerous of situations from a child acting out to a parent getting a divorce.

Functionalist looks at society on a macro level. It is a consensus theory and structuralists prefer to use functionalism as it agrees with their ideals and models and they prefer to look at society as a whole. Functionalists are interested in studying what family is most functional.

Determining family structure and dynamics as well as defining the family is a complex process. Personally, I come from a very traditional family. Much like the assumptions made by the students in the article Defining Family: Young Adults’ Perceptions of the Parent-Child Bond by Mellisa Holtzman (2008). This is what comes to mind when most people define family; a nuclear family, with married parents, and biological children. However, a family is a complex system and can take on many different forms.

In her book The Unfinished Revolution, Kathleen Gerson argues that today, family pathways are more important than family structure. In this context, family structure refers to the organization of a family, and the way that it has been changing as a result of the gender revolution. For example, some nontraditional family structures that are explored in the book include double parent families with both parents earning, single parent families (mostly single mothers), and families with same-sex parents. Gerson argues that while family structures are not negligible, it is family pathways that are more important for the children of the gender revolution. That is to say, the children value the dynamics of their family more than the structure. They are more concerned about how well their parents are able to provide them with the necessary emotional and financial support than they are about how well their families follow a norm. For them, it is more about feeling like they’re part of a family rather than just physically being in one. Gerson emphasizes this when she explains that the people she interviewed “focused on the long-term consequences of parental choices, not on the specific form or type of home these choices produced at any one moment in time.” One important implication of this argument is the way in which the children of the gender revolution imagine their own romantic relationships unfolding. Even there, they prioritize a feeling rather than a format. For example, one

The family structure determines where you derive from and provides a sense of who you are. The typical family structure is perceived as a father and a mother, two children, one boy and one girl, and a pet. The typical family description described above is still promoted and expected to be the “dream family.” Author Meyerhoff, “While the nuclear family with Dad, Mom, and offspring happily coexisting beneath one roof-remains the ideal, variations in family structure are plentiful and often successful” (Meyerhoff). Meaning that a lot of families are remarried spouses with prior children and more common in the last decade same sex marriages. So, do these nontraditional families have the same qualities? Personally, I would think so. After

The word “family” is often used in connection with a person’s ancestry. Most families are based on kinship. Members belong to the family through birth, marriage, or adoption. Family plays the most vital role in our daily life and family is the finest thing that you can ever desire for. It’s the family who assists their child in hardships of life and give affection no matter what happens. Human personality reflects on what his /her family status is and what their families have taught them.

A family can be defined in many ways, but the common denominator in all is the love and fulfillment one gets by being surrounded by family members. Families can sometimes be at odds with each other, but the strain of this type of relationship usually creates an upsetting feeling to the people involved. People want others to rely on, talk to, do things with, share, love, embrace, and be part of. No matter what the family dynamic is the qualities the word family has will remain the same, as time goes by, and life evolves once again for every person living their