12.14.2013

Family Stress and Coping

As I was wanting to learn more about this topic, I decided to do a little research of my own, because I just love learning more about issues that are facing families, and even more importantly, my family.       
From this peer-reviewed article, Integrating Family Resilience and Family Stress Theory, it states that in order to have a good “healthy” family each member needs to strive to make it work. That is what makes a good family. So what makes a good family? It has been found that communication; selflessness, working hard, commitment, and affection are ways to have an effective family balance. It is even safe to say that this can also be applied to have an overall balanced marriage.
The principles applied within the family should also take place within a couple to work towards achieving a happy healthy marriage. When children can see the example that their parents are to them, it helps the children see what it takes to raise a family and also to keep your marriage intact as well. Studies done on families with “strong ties” are more likely to be committed, spend time together, appreciate one another, have effective communication, healthy spiritual wellness, and know how to cope with stress and crisis when it arises and to not give up. This type of ‘family dynamic’ is one that should be implemented within each and every family around the globe. This not only affects the husband and wife, but it affects the children as well. When a family is striving to maintain a healthy balance of those traits listed, then everyone collectively is able to have more value placed on their family. That sense of not giving up keeps the family united and strong.
The article points out what it means to integrate, Family Resilience and Family Stress Theory within a families practice. By implementing this theory into your family you are able to overcome a lot of the stresses that come from everyday family issues. The theory is supposed to resolve conflict, and help families to see where they can continue to improve. Every member is supposed to contribute to make the overall family unit stronger and more effective in the end. By developing this theory into the family it helps the dynamic functions of the family function better and more properly. It helps the family to understand where they are at, and is modeled in such a way to clarify distinctions between family resiliency in its meaning, and the normal changes in family life. It will then help families with the importance of making conceptual and operational distinctions between family outcomes and processes. The theory takes an in depth look at what the family system is and analyzes it in such a way by breaking down the different parts of the family to distinguish where the family can improve. By understanding this concept the Theory will help families to cope with life, and give them the realization that they need to strengthen their family ties. There is an importance in knowing that there are going to be changes occurring within the family and the outcome in how to handle it is where the Theory takes a play. It will truly help struggling families overcome everyday hard ‘family life’ situations.
     I believe that if every individual would learn about integrating the Family Resilience and this Family Stress Theory into their own family of origin, that many families would be saved as an outcome. It breaks down what the Theory means, and how it can be implemented to basic family life. The more that we strive to learn, the more good it does rather than harm. I hope to take what I have learned from the article to apply it within my own growing family; that it can have a lasting positive affect on the way my family is strengthened. This is what makes our family a good one.   
Integrating Family Resilience and Family Stress Theory
Joän M. Patterson
Page 349 of 349-360
Journal of Marriage and Family 64 (May 2002)


No comments:

Post a Comment