A family is a complex natural social system compl

Family systems evolve rules, roles, and power structures as well as the various forms of communication, conflict resolution, and problem solving that enable the performance of numerous tasks and the achievement of their objectives. But a family, unlike other systems, is an emotional system characterized by "affection, loyalty, and durability of membership," that organizes itself in ways that may be either stated or unstated and whose meanings and broad effects may not be fully understood by the family members or, at least, may be difficult for them to isolate and articulate (Goldberg & Goldberg, 1991, p. 4). Family systems also operate "in a temporal context" and involve members of three or even four generations (Hansen, 1983, p. 121). In addressing the problems of maladaptive,

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As Hansen (1983) points out, since families operate in a temporal context change is inevitable and the system must cope with it. The impetus toward change can be internal in origin, such as the progress from one developmental stage to the next, or external, such as the requirement that a child leave home to attend a distant college or a parent retire from work on reaching a certain age. During periods of transition, as the system accommodates itself to these changes, family members will usually "experience a sense of loss, confusion, and anxiety" and, depending on how well the system copes with the positive feedback, the change can be "a stimulus either for successful adaptation or for dysfunction" (Hansen, p. 122). Another important aspect of systems operation is information processing which, if it is faulty, can cause the whole system to malfunction. The reduction of uncertainty and the maintenance of order depend on "the more-or-less free exchange of information within a family and between the family and the outside world" (Goldberg & Goldberg, 1991, p. 43). As new information is taken in outputs are changed in response to the fresh inputs. In a family system this means that "the receiver of new information alters his
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Approximate Word count = 1961
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page)