Family Social Work
Introduction
The family is the most important part of the society and the functioning of the family affects the society. The functioning of the family depends on the kind of environment that family is in. Families that get the right support from the environment function well unlike families that do not get support from the environment. In addition, the environment affects the health of the family. The health of the family can be affected either positively or negatively. If the environment that the environment lives in is good economically and there are enough resources to sustain the family then the family will be able to function well. If the environment in which the family lives does not have enough resources, then the family is not able to function well. This paper analyzes the impact of the environment of family, how it affects the functioning of the family and also how it causes dysfunction of the family.
Discussion
An environment is considered as the surrounding of an object or human being. Positive environmental factors have a positive impact on the families. For instance, positive factors allow families to socialize(Kansas State University, 1997). This in turn improves the wellbeing of the family. A positive environment enhances communication among family members. Communication involves the transfer of information from one person to another. Proper communication reduces conflicts in the family. This is because the family members are able to understand each other (Kolko &Swenson, 2002). A positive environment enables proper communication between the family members. This makes it easy for the family members to share information and learn more. For example, a positive environment encourages families to teach their children the importance of having friends, loving other people. It also allows the families to teach young children on how vital respect is. This in turn enhances the functioning of the family (Pierce &Saranson, 1996).
On the other hand, a negative environment influences communication negatively. Negative environmental factors affect communication between family members and this leads to conflicts in the family. For instance, poor communication affects the relationship between parents and children. It makes it hard for the parents to educate their children on important things like respect, love and having friends. Poor environment can lead to breakdown of the family if the family members are unable to handle the stress. For instance, it can lead to divorce and hence affect the functioning of the family. In this case, the children are affected (Saucier &Janes, 2009).
The physical setting of the home affects the functioning of the family. Families that have poor physical setting tend to be dysfunctional unlike families that are located in the right environment. This is because the environment impacts the families negatively. For instance, families that have good environment tend to be more health than families that do not. The type of environment the family is in determines its health. Poor environment can lead to increase in diseases among the family members and affect the functioning of the family. In contrast a good environment promotes the health of the family. This is because it reduces the rate of diseases in the family. For instance, families that are located in an alcohol free environment are less likely to suffer from the negative effects of alcohol. This is because the family members and children do not suffer from alcohol related illness (Collins, Jordan, Coleman, 2009). Additionally, families that are located in an environment where there is a low rate of crime are less likely to be involved in criminal activities. This is because the environment encourages health behaviors. This is according to a series of studies carried out on the effect of the environment on families and functioning of the family (Collins &Leonard, 1990).
Moreover, the socioeconomic status of families affects the functioning of the families. The socioeconomic status of the families enhances growth in the community and neighborhood. This is because the families have enough education, income that improves economic growth in the community. Families that are well off contribute a lot to development in the society. For instance, the parents contribute in development of schools and churches (Moos &Moos, 1994). This in turn helps improve the education standard in the community as the children get quality education. In addition, these parents contribute in the development of health centers in the community. This in turn improves access to health care in the community (Basavanthappa, 2010). This is because most of the members in the community are able to pay for their medical services as they have enough income. Also, the health care facilities are able to offer adequate health care services to the families. Hence, this improves the functioning of families. Families that have no enough income find it hard to contribute in the development of various facilities in the community like schools and health centers (Bomar, 2004).This makes it difficulty for children from such families to get the right education and health care services. This impacts their wellbeing negatively.
The support systems also affect the functioning of the family. Families that are able to access social support systems are able to function well. This is because social support systems improve the wellbeing of the families in many ways. For instance, supports systems help reduce the prevalence of diseases in the community. It also helps improve the outcome of so e of the diseases. In addition support systems improve interaction between families and the community. This in turn helps eliminate dysfunctional families. Family dysfunction prevents families from functioning well. Functioning in the family can be affected by environmental stress and other environmental problems. Health families tend to overcome crisis more easily than families that are not health. In dysfunctional families, problems tend to be more and this affects the relationship between parents and children. This is because the children needs are not met (McMahon &Peters, 2002).
Conclusion
In conclusion, the environment can have positive impact and negative impact on the family. The type of environment the family is in determines its functioning. Positive environmental factors enhance the functioning of the family. For instance, positive environmental factors lead to low levels of stress and hence improve the health of the family. On the other hand, poor environment affects the functioning of the family negatively. This affects the family health. Studies have shown that various systems in the community and family function together to improve the functioning of the family. For instance, the family needs support from the community son as to improve its functioning and vice versa. Hence, people should improve the surrounding so as to enhance the functioning of the families and the community in general.
Reference
Basavanthappa.(2010).Community Health Nursing. Jaypee Brothers Publishers
Bomar,P.J.(2004).Promoting health in families. Applying family research and theory to nursing practice. Elsevier Health Sciences
Collins,D.,Jordan,C.,&Coleman,H.(2009).An Introduction to Family Social Work.Cengage Learning
Collins,R.L.,&Leonard,K.E.(1990).Alcohol and the family.Research and clinical perspectives.Guilford Press
Kolko,D.J.,&Swenson,C.C.(2002).Assessing and treating physically abused children and their families. A cognitivebehavioral approach.AGE,
Kansas State University.(1997).dysfunctional families. Recognizing and overcoming their effects.Retrieved from http://www.k-state.edu/counseling/topics/relationships/dysfunc.htmlon 19/02/2011
McMahon,R.J.&Peters,R.D.(2002).The effects of parental dysfunction on children.Springer
Moos,R.H.,&Moos,B.S.(1994).Family environment scale manual.Consulting Psychologists Press
Pierce,G.R.,&Saranson,B.R.(1996).Handbook of social support and the family.Birkhäuser
Saucier,L.,&Janes,S.(2009).Community health nursing. Caring for the public’s health.Jones & Bartlett Learning
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