Family Systems in Social Work

Description of the family system 

The family as a system has complex relationships which function as a cohesive emotional unit. Each member is emotionally connected, and each plays a specific role and subscribes to certain rules. As a system, the members of a family based on the tasks assigned respond and interact with each other in certain ways developing patterns which impact the behaviors of other family members. The behavioral patterns established by the members contribute to a balance of the family system or can lead to a dysfunction of the system (Parker, 2017). 

The family under study has functioned as a family system for fifteen years that the couple has been married. This family is a biracial family that consist of the mother age 41 and father age 46. The mother is Caucasian and the father is African American. The couple decided to get married before the first child was born. They have three children together, two boys and a girl. The boy’s ages are 15 and 13 and the girl is 10. The mother is a nurse at the local hospital and the father is an over the road truck driver. The couple’s marriage has been strained for many years now because of both of their occupations and many other reasons. The couple have grown apart and decide that it was time for a divorce. They made the announcement to the children and they are not taking the news very well. 

The family has assigned responsibilities and roles with the significant roles being provision for the family. The mother has various expectations to provide financial help as well as emotional, mental and physical assistance as part of her duties in the family. The father has also been assigned specific roles to enhance the balance and functionality of the family. 

The family is therefore emotionally interconnected especially with the children involved (Thuen et al., 2015). The divorce is as a result of dysfunctions in the family that resulted from the failure in the fulfillment of roles and meeting expectations or the needs assigned. Not all children are affected by divorce. Some are able to function normally, but others have a more difficult time adjusting depending on many factors, including age and gender. The children can be psychologically affected due to the emotional investment on the family. They may see themselves as the reason for the conflicts and the ultimate separation of the family. 

Problems presented to the social worker working with the family 

Divorce in the family affects the psychological, physical, emotional, and economic well beings of the family members involved. Therefore, the social worker working with the family before the divorce is presented with numerous problems by the parents and children. Both parents and children will present issues of support in terms of emotional and financial assistance or any other kind of support needed in the family (Thuen et al., 2015). The parents may worry about how to continue supporting the family. Problems of worry, stress, and exhaustion from the process as parent question the effectiveness of parental control and parenting especially to the children who are in their adolescent years. The problem of trust in children is imminent where children may be struggling with trusting their parents. The problem is accompanied by other issues like shock, uncertainty anger, sadness confusion and stress (Parker, 2017). 

Issues of communication are presented to the worker as the parents may lack effectiveness in connection with the children their reasons for the divorce and provide assurance for the future. The children present the problem of relationships due to the confusion of how to relate with the children. Parental control, discipline, affection emotional support issues the social worker will address. The problems of contact, emotional closeness, wellbeing, and other persisting effects of the divorce such as the effect of the divorce on sibling relationships and hostility (Thuen et al., 2015). The social worker also encounters issues of depression, issues of violence and suicides after the divorce of the parents for the children and parents alike. The social worker addresses family relations and issues such as relocation, financial support, children education and progress and effects of the divorce on physical social-emotional and psychological development. 

The scope of the issue 

The scope of the divorce and its impact on family relationships covers a wide range of issues. Divorcing interventions with children involved covers both short term and long term effects. The process addresses problems affecting the marriage such as happiness in the home. The environment created for children, economic constraints and emotional problems affecting the family (Parker, 2017). 

Young girls are affected differently in some ways than young boys are. Research shows that young girls tend to have some negative symptoms for up to a year, such as depression, anger, and psychological problems that often diminish with time (How Does Divorce Affect Girls and Boys Differently?, n.d.) . Since the boys are in their adolescents years, the divorce may not have as much of an impact on them as their younger sister. At this stage in their lives, they have lived with their parents long enough and has had the opportunity to form a significant relationship with each of their parents, which increases their understanding behind the reason for the divorce. These bonds may make processing the divorce easier, but even with this understanding, there still may be some type of emotional backlash from the boys. Some research does show that adolescent boys whose parents have separated have a greater risk for getting involved in delinquent behavior, and these effects were even greater when marriages had high conflict before the divorce. Having each other helps them to heal faster and cope better after the divorce than if they were an only child. Having a sibling gives them someone they can talk to about the divorce that is on their same level (How Does Divorce Affect Girls and Boys Differently?, n.d.) . 

Engagements presented to the social worker working with the family 

Families facing divorce often seek help from social workers who use several techniques to help the families. Education background as a cultural factor should be considered during divorce and family members should collaborate effectively. Child and family engagements presented are significant since they are key strategies to ensuring success in the protection intervention of a child (Van & Jongen, 2011). In case of a divorce, they counsel and guide the family through strategies such as encouraging effective communication and intervention. Encouraging effective communication is fundamental in the family and social workers play the role of a neutral third party and help the family to share their disappointments and fears in a way that is non-conferential (Barsky, 2010). For the case of intervention, immediate solutions are provided by social workers to the family to enable them to go through the problems that are associated with divorce. Individual issues between the family members are discussed hence enabling social workers to understand and relate the situation for effective guidance and counseling. 

Cultural factors to be considered during engagement 

Education background as a cultural factor in families should be considered and education institutions should acknowledge family members contributions. For it to be lasting and meaningful, as systemic collaboration culture should be encouraged rather than isolated efforts. Such systemic cultures are effective in growing and evolving the educational needs of the family members. Social workers use techniques such as encouraging effective communication and intervention among families facing divorce. Educational background should be collaborative for the factor to be effected. 

Family Assessment 

The purpose for the assessment for the family is to identify the presenting issues that may affecting the family as a whole as well as individually. This evaluation will allow the social worker to better understand the family and how they are coping with the divorce. The assessment will also serve as a guide for the social worker to be able to personalize an intervention strategy that is specific for the family’s current and on-going needs. 

Since the children are having a difficult time processing the news of divorce at this time, the assessment would consist of speaking with each child and getting their thoughts and feelings on their parent’s divorce. In this situation, since divorce is not final, there would need to be an on-going assessment in order to ensure that the children are not showing symptoms of a trauma- or stress-related disorder. Trauma-and stressor-related disorders include disorders in which exposure to a traumatic or stressful event is listed explicitly as a diagnostic condition. These include reactive attachment disorder, disinhibited social engagement disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), acute stress disorder, and adjustment disorder (Association, 2013) . Parental assessments can also be utilized in this case to monitor and report any change in the children’s behavior at home and school as well. 

Interventions 

Regardless of the stage of development of a family, divorce usually has negative implications on the family members, especially the children. When the parents are biracial, a concern on the part of the children might be whether they will be accepted by the extended family at large. There is a need to ensure the necessary interventions are put in place to help children cope with the change of events upon divorce. 

Weaver & Schofield (2015) asserts that one of the interventions that could come in handy in helping children deal with divorce is equipping them with the necessary intelligence so that they can be able to cope. This involves banking on children’s intelligence. Besides this, positive parenting is an intervention that comes in handy because children understand their parents much better. 

Preventive intervention is an intervention technique that has been discussed to have economic benefits not only on the children but also on the family at large. New Beginnings Program (NBP) is one of the suggested techniques. Herman et al., (2015) assert that such programs reduce the exposure of children to parental conflict, teaches the children to be disciplined and also enhance the relationship between the children and their parents. Another intervention is putting in place programs that train parents on how to handle children and the situation in general. The interventions mentioned above reduces the likelihood of either party having mental illness related problems due to stress. 

Children will interpret their parent’s divorce in different ways according to their age, therefore the intervention method used needs to be tailored accordingly. Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) is another evidence-based intervention that can help the children cope with the negative effects of their parent’s divorce. Focusing on the emotional and behavioral problems, that the children could possibly experience, multiple scientific analyses have consistently demonstrated that cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) provides effective treatment to address these issues (Bosman, 2016) . This therapy helps the children to transformation their negative thoughts and concerns about the divorce by focusing on the positive aspects of the situation. This process will help resolve the behavior and emotional problems that is a direct result of the divorce. 

Depression is also a psychological effect that CBT can help with, that children of divorced parents’ experience. Depression in children is a serious condition that entails an increased risk of psychological and physiological ill-health in the future, suicide, and social adjustment problems (Arnberg & Ost, 2014) . CBT helps to change these emotions and behaviors by teaching the children to affect their thoughts and overt behaviors in an active and problem-focused way (Arnberg & Ost, 2014) . This is achieved by helping the children develop positive thoughts about themselves, the people around them, and also their future. Spending more time engaging productive or enjoyable activities supports the intervention strategy in occupying the mind with positive thoughts. Applying CBT intervention will allow the children to readjust and adapt to their new way of living by facing challenges in a constructive way with their newly acquired coping and problem solving skills. 

Advantages and Disadvantages of Interventions 

Despite the physical and legal separation, family Intervention redefines unique relationships by typically initiating a therapy session to all potential participants. The family therapy session enables every individual member to share their concerns, feelings and further enlightens the guardians on the significance of parenting together for the well-being of their children (  Donahey  2018). Additionally, the parent's divorces result in psychological difficulties in vulnerable children, and if wisely left unaddressed it may linger fondly into maturity. Therefore, an immediate intervention should be taken to prevent the potential long-term consequences to the children. The America Psychological Associations (2017) estimates that half of the American marriages end up broken, and the likely possibility is even higher for the second and succeeding nuptials. Parental intervention helps to establish remedies that prevent the continual cycle of the divorcement and thwart the surge of troubled families from extrapolating into the future age group. Interventions are essential to children with struggles to mental constructs that have manifested inside them due to a negative picture emanating from parental divorces. Most of the vulnerable children are unimbued to the abrupt changes imposed by parental divorcement and end up traumatized if left untreated. The intervention program is more sensitive and affects more adolescent children as compared to adults.  Luecken  et al. (2015) suggest that intervention results in stressful life acts that prejudice the minors psychology nature adversely. Interventions can affect the biological functions of children.  Brotman  et al. 2007 stated that interventions could subtly alter the biological functions of the juveniles depending on the personal characteristics. Moreover, children under parental separation are at significant risk of externalizing and internalizing issues while undertaking interventions programs. They merely tend to experience varying patterns of emotional reactivity and psychological dysregulation .Children under interventions experience delinquencies, child adjustment problems and negative self-esteem due to less parenthood attachment. Lastly, Intervention programs provide a cost implication on married finances.  

Cognitive therapy can be very beneficial to patients who need to essentially unlearn negative behaviors and/or thought processes. This form of therapy often provides patients with the support they need to eventually live a better life (Pros and Cons of Cognitive Therapy, 2019) . One advantage of this type of therapy is that can be customized to meet individual needs. The therapy is conducted with one on one sessions with the client, which allows the therapist or counselor to really concentrate on the patient’s issues and find a solution that best suits them. Another advantage is it is designed to treat various mental health needs, by helping individuals find solutions to their problems without the use of medication. Also, the desired results of this therapy can be completed within a short period of time, helping the patient to feel better sooner. Lastly, the skills that are learned in CBT are useful, practical and helpful strategies that can be incorporated into everyday life to help the patient cope better with future stresses and difficulties, even after the treatment has finished (Pros and Cons of Cognitive Therapy, 2019) . 

Although CBT therapy can be very beneficial for many, it may not be suitable for all that uses it. This therapy is only effective if the person is fully committed to the process. The patient has to be willing to confront their issues and want to correct the problem. Another disadvantage of this therapy is that it is not a long term solution for complex mental health problems. If regular sessions are attended, this could take up a lot of the client’s time, which may be inconvenient for those that have a busy lifestyle. Since CBT focuses on the individual’s capacity to change themselves (their thoughts, feelings and behaviors), and does not address wider problems in systems or families that often have a significant impact on an individual’s health and wellbeing (Pros and Cons of Cognitive Therapy, 2019) . This is considered a disadvantage if the family as a whole is affected , instead of just the children alone. This therapy is only designed to change individual behavior and thought patterns and not the dysfunction of the family system once it has been interrupted. 

Recommendations for Treatment 

During the process of separation and divorce, families are usually susceptible to a series of changes in their normal lives. Some of these changes include the integration of new family members, implementation of different communication approaches, grieving, and the implementation of new goals (Maker & Lovsin, 2015). Therapy is a critical aspect that fosters a family’s capacity to adapt to these changes effectively, particularly children. According to Dozier (2014), children of families who face divorce exhibit high rates of behavioral problems, anxiety, depression, and are likely to experience relationship issues later in life. Dozier (2014) further argues that children whose families execute an effective and orderly divorce are less likely to demonstrate the effects mentioned above; this, therefore, emphasizes the efficacy and need for therapy during the separation and divorce process. 

In this scenario, we recommend the implementation of cognitive behavioral therapy as the most effective therapeutic approach. Divorce is a major change in a family institution and children ought to learn how to cope and adjust to this change. However, for some children, adapting and dealing with the situation may not be an easy task. Being divided into separate households and maybe even a new home or school can increase a child’s anger, convey concerns of separation anxiety, and negatively affect their school performances and social interactions. CBT can assist in helping the children with any of these issues that may complicate their ability to function normally after the separation. 

Deficits in problem-solving significantly relate to aspects such as distress, depression, and delinquent behaviors; these aspects represent the possible impacts of divorce, especially among children. Social-skills training and problem-solving approaches are among the commonly used CBT intervention strategies; these approaches play a critical role in helping children learn how to develop and implement more effective or appropriate solutions to situational conflicts and the skills requisite in responding to situational conflicts effectively (Holosko, Dulums, & Sowers, 2013). The problem-solving aspect under this intervention underscores the efficacy of alternative thinking, consequential thinking, and means-end thinking. Alternative thinking fosters a child’s capacity to develop alternative solutions to a particular issue, in this case, divorce. Consequential thinking refers to the ability to evaluate long and short-term impacts of an individual’s decision. Means-end thinking, on the other hand, enhances a person’s ability to plan a sequence of goal-directed actions to avoid impediments or hindrances and resolve issues promptly (Holosko, Dulums, & Sowers, 2013). Each of the skill mentioned above will play a critical role in enhancing the children’s capacity to have a smooth and easy adjustment process by approaching the situation in a more positive light rather than being aggressive as a sequel of the internal anger following their parents’ divorce. 

With regards to the social-skill training aspect of this therapeutic approach, children are likely to benefit from group cognitive behavioral therapy. In group therapy, these children are likely to meet their peers who are facing a similar issue. Group therapy enhances the creation of helpful relationships, and the learning of skills required in developing a child’s behavior in a social setting (Effective Child Therapy, 2017). Group CBT therapy will enhance the children’s social skills that may have been damaged by the divorce and also improve the ability to have a positive response in social situations. 

We also recommend the use of family therapy as an alternative therapeutic approach. Family therapy commonly referred to as family counseling or family systems therapy is a field of psychotherapy aimed at working with families to nurture or cultivate change and development among family members; it is a therapeutic approach that seeks to minimize conflict and distress among family members by improving the systems of interaction amid members of the family (Stobie & Tromski, 2009). Family therapy is a treatment approach that perceives change as a factor of the interaction systems amid family members; it underscores family relationships as a critical element in psychological and social health. Family therapy employs the use of various counseling techniques to approach a particular situation. Some of these techniques include Milan therapy, strategic therapy, transgenerational therapy, narrative therapy, psychoeducation, structural therapy, and psychotherapy (Stobie & Tromski, 2009). 

Structural therapy aims to identify and reorganize the family system’s arrangement (Dozier, 2014). Strategic therapy is an approach which focuses on analyzing the interaction patterns amid family members. Milan therapy centers on evaluating a family’s belief system. Narrative therapy focuses on restoring the main problem-centered narrative and emphasizes a specific context and the need to distinguish the problem from the victim or patient (in this case, children) (Maker & Lovsin, 2015). Trans-generational therapy centers on evaluating the trans-generational conveyance of unhelpful patterns or series of behavior and beliefs. Psychoeducation is a therapeutic intervention (evidence-based) for individuals (children) and their loved ones (parents) which offers information and support to effectively comprehend and cope with a situation (divorce) (Maker & Lovsin, 2015). Psychotherapy employs the integration of psychological approaches to assist children in overcoming issues effectively and changing their perspective and attitude towards a particular situation (Dozier, 2014). Psychotherapy focuses on improving a person’s well-being, resolving or mitigating troublesome circumstances, thoughts, compulsions, emotions, and beliefs, and improving social skills and relationships (Dozier, 2014). 

Conclusion 

To sum it up, it is apparent that the pattern of behavior established by members of a family leads to the balance or a dysfunction of the family system. For the case of the family presented above, love and cohesion were the major determinants of the balance of the system for fifteen years. The case of divorce as a result of the family members not meeting the predetermined expectations was, therefore, a great deal which would have a large impact especially on children who had grown under this umbrella of family system. On that matter, the problems presented to the social worker dealing with the family include: Parental issues on matters of emotional and financial support to the children, issues of communication considering that the parents may lack effective communication after divorce and the children’s confusion on how to relate to both parents. In addition, the children’s lack of emotional closeness and contact with both parent presents a major issue that contributes to other problems such as depression, issues of violence among others. 

To give the appropriate intervention, the social worker is required to evaluate the scope of the issue which include: The short and the long term effects of the divorce on each family member. Matters affecting happiness of the members such as the in conducive environment created for children, economic constraints and emotional impacts should be addressed. The engagements in the family systems are, moreover, key when addressing these issues because they guide the family on the matters of protection interventions for the children. The educational background, for instance, is a factor that should be highly considered. Additionally, the cultural factors should be considered when coming up with long lasting interventions. For instance, a systematic collaboration when dealing with education factor should be encouraged rather than isolated efforts. 

Family assessment is clearly a determinant of effective interventions. This will allow the social worker to evaluate how each family member is adjusting to the change. The children in this case require more assessment because they are the victims of this divorce and are more susceptible to cases of stress and related disorders. Most importantly, parental assessment should be encouraged in monitoring of the children. 

One of the intervention that should be considered is equipping the children with the necessary intelligence for them to cope up with the change. Also, a preventive intercession that reduces the children’s exposure to family conflict should be used. Other methods include: Training the parents on how to handle the situation and cognitive behavior therapy to help with the psychological issues resulting from divorce. These interventions generally prevents the long term consequences to the children. They, however, cannot work if the family members are not willing to commit and may not also solve the long-term mental health effects for the children. Consequently, a social worker should use wise techniques to ensure that the members are able to collaborate with the interventions chosen. 

References 

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