Looking at family dynamics, they play a huge role in a person's health. With there being so many kinds of family dynamics, let's take a look at how each type of dynamic affects different kinds of people. It has been shown that having close relations with your family can decrease the risks of depression and the rate at which someone gets diseases. Some examples of different family dynamics include single-parent households, sibling relationships, only-child families, blended families, the families we choose, and family estrangement. This leads us to the difference between a functional family versus a dysfunctional family. A functional family fosters a safe space for all of the people who are living in that household. A functional family puts rules in place but tries to avoid harsh punishments when possible. In this kind of household, there are usually very positive attitudes which are usually contagious. In a dysfunctional family, there are usually not many boundaries that are set up. There is also conflict between many members of the house in a dysfunctional family.
To better understand family dynamics, we should look at the different types of families and the relationships that are found within them. As research has shown, growing up with siblings has a major effect on the other children in the household. A sibling relationship is one that you have for your entire life, for the most part. Another family relationship that can happen is a single-parent family. This indicates that only one parent is raising the child due to some sort of circumstance whether it be the biological parent or someone in close relations in the immediate family. Some research has shown that growing up with a single parent could be more beneficial than growing up in a household with married parents who constantly argue or are fighting all the time. The next type of family dynamic that we are going to look at is the only-child family. The only-child family seems to be growing more and more popular. It is seen that only children do well in school if they have an involved parent reading to them every so often. Subsequently, the blended family is the next type of family dynamic that we will be talking about. A blended family is where there are children from previous marriages all living in the same household. In a blended family, the children sometimes feel unseen or unheard. Usually, children like to be set in a routine, and getting new family members is a hard adaptation to make. Then there is the family that we choose. The family that we choose does not have to be blood-related, but people who make you feel like you are at home and safe when you are with them. The last family dynamic that should be brought up is family estrangement. Family estrangement occurs when one of the family members distances themselves from the others. This usually happens due to something negative that has happened between members of the family.
References:
Psychology Today. (n.d.). Understanding Family Dynamics. Psychology Today. Retrieved June 22, 2023, from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/family-dynamics
Hey Karly! I also posted about how important family dynamics are for children, but I linked mine with negative punishment. It is very interesting to learn about how important family dynamics are!
ReplyDeleteHi Karly ! This is a great post. Family dynamic is so important to a child's development. People assume you need a whole team to properly raise a child but families can look like so many different things. The line where you mentioned that single parents can raise children in a better environment than a couple who is constantly fighting, I completely agree with. My parents were a lot happier after they split and believe it or not there was a lot less stress in our lives from that point on. I know a lot of parents who should have ended things for the better but didn't and it causes a lot of anxiety when kids have to watch their parents fight. I loved reading your post.
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