Term | Definition |
cosanguineous | blood relationships |
affinal | marital relationships |
family of origin | family unit a person is born into |
family theory | used to describe families and how the family unit responds to events both w/in and outside the family |
family systems theory | derived from general systems theory, a sciences of wholeness that is characterized by interaction among the components of the system and between the system and the enviornment |
general systems theory | expanded scientific thought from a simplistic view of direct cause and effect to a more complex and interrelated theory |
feedback | refers to processes in the family that help identify strengths and needs and determine how well goals are accomplished |
family stress theory | explains how families react to stressful events and suggests factors that promote adaptation to stress |
stressors | events that cause stress and have the potential to effect a change in the family social system |
resiliency model of family stress, adjustment, and adaptation | emphasizes that the stressful situation in not necessarily pathologic or detrimental to the family but demonstrates that the family needs to make fundamental structural or systemic changes to adapt to the situation |
developmental theory | addresses family change over time using Duvall's family life cycle stages based on the predictable changes in the family's structure, function, and roles w/ the age of the oldest child as the marker for stage transition |
Duvall's Stage 1 | Marriage and an Independent Home: The joining of Families- reestablish couple identity; realign relationships w/ extended family; make decisions regarding parenthood |
Duvall's Stage 2 | Families w/ Infants- integrate infants into the family unit; accommodate to new parenting and grandparenting roles; maintain the marital bond |
Duvall's Stage 3 | Families w/ Preschoolers- socialize children; parents and children adjust to separation |
Duvall's Stage 4 | Families w/ Schoolchildren- children develop peer relationships; parents adjust to their children's peer and school influences |
Duvall's Stage 5 | Families w/ Teenagers- adolescents develop increasing autonomy; parents refocus on midlife marital and career issues; parents begin a shift toward concern for the older generation |
Duvall's Stage 6 | Families as Launching Centers- parents and young adults establish independent identities; parents renegotiate marital relationship |
Duvall's Stage 7 | Middle Aged Families- reinvest in couple identity w/ concurrent development of independent interests; realign relationships to include in-laws and grandchildren; deal w/ disabilities and the death of the older generation |
Duvall's Stage 8 | Aging Families- shift from a work role to leisure and semiretirement or full retirement; maintain couple and individual functioning while adapting to the aging process; prepare for own death and dealing w/ the loss of spouse, or siblings, and other peers |
family structure | called family composition, consists of individuals, each w/ a socially recognized status and position, who interact w/ one another on a regular, recurring basis in socially sanctioned ways |
traditional nuclear family | consists of a married couple and their biologic children |
nuclear family | composed of two parents and their children |
blended family | also called reconstituted family, includes at least one stepparent, stepsibling, or half sibling |
extended family | includes at least one parent, one or more children and one or more members (related or unrelated) other than a parent or sibling |
binuclear family | refers to parents continuing the parenting role while terminating the spousal unit |
joint custody | the court assigns divorcing parents equal rights and responsibilities concerning the minor child or children |
polygyny | multiple wives |
polyandry | multiple husbands |
sororal | societies practice polygyny where the wives are sisters |
nonsororal | societies practice polygyny where the wives are unrelated |
family function | refers to the interactions of family members, especially the quality of those relationships and interactions |
generational continuity | parents rear their own children in much the same way that they themselves were reared |
internal resources | adaptability and integration are the first type of resource |
adaption | reflected in learning to be patient, becoming better organized, and becoming more flexible |
integration | refers to the couple's attempt to continue some activities they engaged in before they became parents |
authoritarian parents | also called dictatorial, try to control their children's behavior and attitudes through unquestioned mandates; "Bc I said so" |
permissive parents | exert too little or no control over their children's actions |
authoritative parents | also called democratic, combine practices from both of the previously described parenting styles |
discipline | means to teach or refers to a set of rules governing conduct |
reasoning | involves explaining why an act is wrong and is usually appropriate for older children, especially when moral issues are involved |
behavior modification theory | behavior that is rewarded will be repeated; behavior that is not rewarded will be extinguished |
natural consequences | those that occur w/o any intervention, such as being late and having to clean up the dinner table |
logical consequences | those that are directly related to the rule, such as not being allowed to play w/ another toy until the used ones are put away |
unrelated consequences | those that are imposed deliberately, such as no playing until hw is completed or the use of time-out |
divided/split custody | each parent is awarded custody of one or more of the children, thereby separating siblings |
joint legal custody | the children reside w/ one parent, but both parents are the children's legal guardians, and both participate in childrearing |
foster care | 24hr substitute care for children outside their own homes |
feelings/behaviors of infants r/t divorce | effects of reduced mothering or lack of mothering; increased irritability; disturbance in eating, sleeping, & elimination; interference w/ attachment process |
feelings/behaviors of early preschool kids (2-3yrs) r/t divorce | frightened & confused; blame themselves on divorce; fear of abandonment; increased irritability, whining, tantrums; regressive behaviors; separation anxiety |
feelings/behaviors of later preschool kids (3-5yrs) r/t divorce | fear of abandonment; blame themselves; decreased self-esteem; bewilderment regarding all human relationships; more aggressive w/ others; engage in fantasy to seek understanding of divorce |
feelings/behaviors of early school-age kids (5-6yrs) r/t divorce | depression & immature behavior; loss of appetite & sleep disorders; may be able to verbalize some feelings & understand some divorce-r/t changes; increased anxiety & aggression; feelings of abandonment by departing parent |
feelings/behaviors of middle school age kids (6-8yr) r/t divorce | panic rxns; feelings of deprivation; profound sadness, depression, fear, insecurity; feeling abandoned/rejected; fear of future; difficulty expressing anger; desire to reconcile parents; impaired capacity to play; decline in school performance; see pg38 |
feelings/behaviors of later school-age kids (8-12yrs) r/t divorce | more realistic understanding of divorce; intense anger; divided loyalties; ability to express anger; ashamed of parental behavior; desire for revenge; feeling lonely, rejected, and abandoned; altered peer relationships; decline in school performance;pg38 |
feelings/behaviors of early school-age kids (5-6yrs) r/t divorce | able to disengage self from conflict; feelings of a profound sense or loss; feelings of anxiety; worry about themselves, parents, siblings; expression of anger, sadness, shame, embarrassment; may w/draw from family; disturbed concept of sexuality; act out |