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The special care baby
Published in Anne McFadyen, Special care babies and their developing relationships, 2019
The nature and course of the illness and its treatment have to be taken into account in any attempt to conceptualise the whole experience of each family. Rolland has considered the impact on families of chronic, rather than acute, illnesses: From the family point of view family systems theory must include the illness system. Further, to place the unfolding of [chronic] disease into a developmental context it is crucial to understand the intertwining of three evolutionary threads: the illness, individual and family life cycles.(Rolland, 1987: 203) His proposed theoretical framework is also relevant to the conceptualisation of the stress of acute life-threatening illness. It seems particularly apt when considering the sick neonate. The onset of the illness is likely to be rapid, and to occur in some cases even before extrauterine life has begun. In such instances, the family are required to rapidly mobilise their own crisis management skills, and, as Rolland points out, this is in the context of highly charged emotional states.
The Family
Published in Mary E. Braine, Julie Wray, Supporting Families & Carers, 2018
Family systems theory (or family process) is based upon general systems theory. As Turnbull and Turnbull (2001) highlight, family systems theory is grounded within the greater general systems theory, which states that all living systems are composed of interdependent parts. Family systems theory applies general systems theory to the living unit of the family by emphasising interactions and relationships. In other words, a family is a social system operating through transactional patterns that underpin the family system and their function (Dulfano 1982, p. 24). The family is the way it is because of the people that exist in it, and anything that happens in that family affects everyone. Interactions and personalities matter greatly in family systems theory and concepts such as cohesion, equilibrium, flexibility, structure, rules and boundaries are features within this theory.
Play Therapy in Assisting Children With Medical Challenges
Published in Lawrence C. Rubin, Handbook of Medical Play Therapy and Child Life, 2017
David A. Crenshaw, Jillian E. Kelly
While the interventions in this chapter are centered on individual play therapy and family therapy, including family play therapy, it is important to recognize that play therapy groups are often used in hospitals by child life specialists to enable children to allay their anxieties and fears about their illness, surgery, or other medical procedures (Nabors, Bartz, Kichler, Sievers, Elkins, & Pangallo, 2013). The play therapy is often offered in the larger theoretical frame of family systems theory because the suffering pervades and occupies a central role in the lives of all the family members. Like the findings of Santacroce (2003), Wijnberg-Williams, Kamps, Klip, and Hoekstra-Weebers (2006) found that anxiety was high for parents of children newly diagnosed with cancer. Family systems theory considers the impact of the change in one part of the system affecting the rest of the system. Family systems that have destabilized strongly seek to return to homeostasis. When the destabilization is the result of a serious and/or chronic illness of the child, it is expected that the process of returning to homeostasis will be lengthy and marked by recurrent crises and setbacks. Play therapy offers many compelling advantages in working with the individual child who is ill.
Parent perspectives on augmentative and alternative communication in Sri Lanka
Published in Augmentative and Alternative Communication, 2022
Nimisha Muttiah, Ayendree Seneviratne, Kathryn D. R. Drager, Nina A. Panterliyon
Disability is a global phenomenon; however, individuals with disabilities are overrepresented in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) (Maloni et al., 2010) and face many barriers to participation (Schlebusch et al., 2020), especially if they live in low-resource areas. Many children with disabilities and complex communication needs can benefit from access to augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) (Goldbart & Marshall, 2004). A family systems lens can be a useful tool to understand families of children with complex communication needs (Mandak et al., 2017). Family systems theory describes families as interconnected, that is, members are linked to and dependent on each other (O’Neill & Wilkinson, 2020). A family is a system that exists as part of multiple other systems such as communities, schools, and religious institutions (Watson, 2012). Given this interconnectedness, a focus on a child’s communication, especially for a child with complex communication needs, must be interpreted through family experiences. Family systems theory provides a framework to support professionals in establishing a collaborative relationship with families requiring AAC (Mandak et al., 2017); however, AAC services provided to families are not always family-centered (Dunst, 2002).
Extending the biopsychosocial conceptualisation of chronic post surgical pain in children and adolescents: The family systems perspective
Published in Canadian Journal of Pain, 2022
There are a number of other questions that future family systems research as applied to pediatric CPSP should consider. The parental dyad, and particularly the state of the primary caregivers’ relationship, is critical. The adult chronic pain literature has shown that marital satisfaction often moderates the effects of pain on quality of life,87 and it may also be the case that parental influences on CPSP are moderated by relationship harmony between the caregivers. As an example, family systems theory recognizes the concept of “scapegoating” in dysfunctional families, whereby the parents can avoid addressing their own interpersonal difficulties by directing all of their attention toward one member of the family unit.88 It is conceivable that a similar excessive focus on a child recovering from surgery as a diversion from parental relationship difficulties could function to generate or maintain CPSP in the child. This is an example of the family systems model applying to younger children undergoing major surgery, whereas previous examples of CPSP and family homeostasis have related more to adolescent postoperative care.
Home away from home: An examination of the billet family experience in junior ice hockey
Published in Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 2022
Emily Wright, Daniel Gould, Karl Erickson
The study’s systematic, triad approach also reflected over-arching ideas of family systems theory (FST) (Bowen, 1978). This seminal theory views the family as one emotional unit and uses a systems approach to describe the complex interactions in the family unit. In particular, FST highlights the importance of connectedness and reactivity (e.g., the way in which family members respond to one another’s behaviors), which make the functioning of family members interdependent. In this study, all members (parents, players, and billet parents) were connected through the billet family experience in junior ice hockey. In this case, parents, players, and billet parents’ attitudes and behaviors were complementary of one another, thus leading to balanced functioning during this experience. Accordingly, little empirical evidence exists linking FST to the sport context, as this theory has been mainly applied in the family therapy and family development literature (Crocker & Walker, 2017). In the present study, examining members of the billet family experience as one integrated unit provided valuable findings that extended knowledge in this area beyond an individualized approach.