Term paper on Claude Guldner S The Emerging Family

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Claude Guldner’s essay The Emerging Family, provides an excellent review of lesson one in the reading selection of, Families in Canadian Society. Throughout both contents of the readings I was surprised to see how they similarly complemented one another, both discuss issues of the progression of the family life cycle, as well as the traditional family. With the knowledge I have gained from my studies, I will discuss how Claude Guldner’s essay provides similar form, and objectives to that of lesson one. I will also provide reference from both forms of writings, so that all variations of my studies comply accurately with Claude’s essay, and lesson one’s material.

Through extensive inquiry, I have organized three supporting points from both readings. Each point coincides with one another; they include, What is family, Family systems theory, and Developmental theory. All three of these points in order provide an accurate and formal review of the material that will be analyzed. In finalizing my assessment of both sources, I will note that there is sincere mutual agreement between the two, and that they reflect one another significantly with their understanding of the emerging family, and it’s stages of progression.

The first of three points that I will introduce will be “What is Family”. There are many definitions as to what family is, some believe that children are the necessary ingredients for the use of the term family, and others simply disagree. In the reading selection, of The Emerging Family, they note how “current definitions move us away from the model of the family that Eichler (1988) call’s “monolithic”.” The term monolithic means to view all families as essentially the same in composition, structure and function, to a “multidimensional” model (Eichler: 1988). The multidimensional model involves several dimensions of familial interaction. Each discusses six of these dimensions: procreative, socialization, sexual, residential, economic, and emotional. It is not necessary for all of these dimensions to be present, or present at the same intensity, in order to inform a definition of the family. Through my review of lesson one I was able to act on the realization that there is more than one definition of family. The course defines family through the multidimensional model, and states the many realistic forms families are known by; they include, Biological family: people who are related, the Economic family: related people sharing a household, and the Psychological family: emotionally identified group. Other definitions include the Census family/ household, the Nuclear family, and the Extended or supra family (Guldner). Between the two reading sources, Claude Guldner’s essay and the material in lesson one, it is clear that both hold many similar properties as to just “what family is”. Through careful examination it is apparent that both the essay and the material in lesson one share comparable fact and reason, both note how the emerging family is base on a multidimensional model, and how there are several dimensions involved. As well both sources necessitate that we move from an essentialist definition of family, and expand to a constructivist perspective (Guldner), meaning that we participate in the construction of our realities and that our views change with our experience. Constructivist thinking enables us to create families of choice.

The second point that I am going to introduce is “Family systems theory”. The purpose of this theory is to provide us with a framework for understanding how families function at the six stages of the family life cycle. Because families are so diverse, and because those who study the family take so many different positions, there is no one theory or framework that suits everyone. With reference to the essay, The emerging family, we learn that systems theory has enabled us to recognize that at one level all families are alike. “They all have structures (regulated patterns through which people relate to one another); functions (the steps families take to fulfill their purposes); and operations (the specific activities a family undertakes in its’ process of fulfilling functions)” (Guldner). Through these structures is where every family develops its’ own idiosyncratic patterns of interaction (Guldner). Know let’s resort to the material in lesson one; every system is composed of a sub-system, in order to understand the family systems theory, you must understand each of the sub-concepts. They are as follows, wholeness, hierarchy, boundaries, rules, control, and...

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