Report: Impacts of Sociological Factors on Community Work Clients

This report delves into the impacts of sociological factors on clients within community work and services, using the case of Anuk to illustrate these effects. It examines the influence of social institutions like family and education, as well as cultural institutions, on an individual's development and well-being. The report explores how stratification, the Vietnam War, and family separation created barriers for Anuk, leading to psychological damage and health complications. It discusses the role of social policies, such as mental health policies, and sociological theories, like functionalism, in shaping Anuk's life and influencing Australian social policy. The report concludes with strategies to improve service delivery, including social policy interventions and the promotion of social interactions, aiming to address social and cultural issues and enhance outcomes for service users. It also suggests how support providers can revise their work to better address these issues.

Impacts of Sociological Factors on Clients in Community Work and Services
Institution Affiliation
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Introduction
Negative experiences at one time in an individual’s life can have e a significant impact on their
well being. These experiences include deaths of loved one, divorce, forced separation from
families among others. Post-traumatic stress disorder is mental health condition that occurs as a
result of experiencing or witnessing a terrifying event or events. Its symptoms include
nightmares and severe anxiety (Aspire Learning Resources, 2015). This report explores the
traumatic experiences of Anuk
Q1. Identify two major social institutions in Australian society
Social institutions are norms and subsystems that are established to support the survival of
society. The following are the major institutions in Australia
The family social institution
Educational, social institution
Q2. How these two social institutions have affected Anuk’s development
The family
The family is the basic social institution of the Australian society, and it is tasked with the
responsibility of socializing children and instilling in them cultural values and provides a sense
of belonging and identity (Blundell, Griffiths & McNeill,2013). The family has given Anuk a
sense of belonging and identity and facilitated his socialization process besides instilling cultural
values in him.
Education social Institution
Education as a social institution plays a significant role in socialization and encouraging
integration especially amid cultural diversities. Schools enable students from different cultural
backgrounds to interact with the mainstream culture (Brunsma, 2007). Having been brought up

in Asia in his early life, the school played a role in his transition to the Mainstream Australian
Culture and integration with different cultures.
Q3 Major cultural institutions in Australian Society
Family
Educational institution
Q4. Discuss how these two cultural institutions have affected Anuk’s development
Cultural institutions are those institutions which play a role in preserving and promoting cultures
of a given community. The family and education institutions double up both as social and
cultural institutions (Hallinan,2007). His Vietnam family played a role in instilling in him
cultural values based on the Vietnamese culture and helped in molding him into a full member of
the society. The role of instilling in him cultural values associated with the Australian culture and
transitioning him into a full member of the Australian Society. The school played a role in
opening him to more cultural values held by different cultures within Australia and introducing
him into the Australian mainstream culture.
Q5.How stratification has affected Anuk’s participation in the Vietnam War and society
Stratification refers to the process of classifying people within the society into different classes
or groups. Depending on the Society, some people belong to certain groups have more power,
status and are more wealthy than the others. The differences between these groups are what lead
into stratification. Among the problems caused by social stratification include social disparities
(In Pedersen, 2015)Having come from a lower class Anuk desires to join the Army to have a
good source of income although he is discharged soon after. In normal instances former
members of the Army should lead good lives even after having been discharged from the army,

however having come from a lower class, his links with the army ended there after discharge. He
was also compelled to take part in the Vietnam War so that he could be able to marry his
sweetheart. His belonging to a lower class has also affected his ability to reconnect with his
children and family members
Q6. Explain four barriers that were created when Anuk was separated from his biological
family and through his participation in the Vietnam War.
Dislike for School
As a result of the psychological damage that was caused by the separation of Anuk from his
family, his education development was significantly affected. His dislike for school was so much
that he ended up dropping out of school to work under apprenticeship.
Inability to coexist peacefully with people
As a result of the traumatic experiences that he had, Anuk became irate and violent. He was
always in trouble with his teachers in school and was also aggressive towards his young family.
Increased his chances of getting divorced
Although likely to marry young, research has shown that showed that children separated from
their families are likely to be divorced because of violent tendencies in future despite aspiring to
have stable relationships. One of the desires by Anuk was to get married to his sweetheart.
However, his first experiences have made it impossible to live with his wife and children hence
the reason for his divorce (Jigsaw Publications., & Challenger TAFE ,2009)
Susceptibility to sickness
Traumatizing experiences also increase an individual’s chances of developing health
complications. His average life was characterized by excessive drinking and aggression. The
traumatizing experiences both during the Vietnam, war and as a result of family separation

denied Anuk a chance to live a healthy life. At a later date, he is diagnosed with Post Traumatic
Stress Disorder which compounds his problems further.
Q7.Identify and discuss the underpinning social policy that has influenced Anuk’s life.
A social policy refers to an action plan by the government aimed at introducing reforms to the
society or improving the society
Mental Health Policy
Mental health challenges have been classified as among the fastest growing health problems in
Australia. Sufficient funds have been set aside by the Australian government to facilitate
adequacy of services in the mental health sector. Although momentarily, the social policy has
helped him to identify and get some support on his post-traumatic stress disorder (Thorpe,2015)
Q8. Research 1 sociological theory and in the context of this theory discuss the effect the
above has had on Anuk and his family.
Sociological theories exist to offer explanations, on the reason and relationships that exist
between certain social facts.
Functionalist theory views the society as a system of interconnected units that exist together and
works harmoniously to achieve balance and equilibrium for the whole society. These units also
facilitate the meeting of individual and collective goals. The family, being the basic unit of the
society played a role in socializing Anuk and giving him a sense of identity. Although his
biological family did not play this role in its entirety, the contribution of the foster family was
also significant. In both, the family as a whole and Anuk, in particular, had their goals met
because of that harmonious working (Koop,2010).
Q9. Discuss how Anuk’s story has influenced and continues to influence Australian social
policy.

Anuk’s story demonstrates the inadequacies that have been in existence within the Australian
Society especially in the Health Care sector. It has influenced the development of more health
care policies in general and mental health care in particular as well as continued funding from the
government to help reduce these inadequacies.
Q10. Explain how this influences current cultures of service delivery
The impact of this has been an improvement in the delivery of health services, incensement in
the efficiency of service delivery as well as the spreading of support services especially for
mental health victims to more local government areas. It has also facilitated the creation of
alternative support services for such victims.
Q11. Discuss two strategies that you would apply to make improvements to address social
and cultural issues better and improve outcomes for service users such as Anuk.
Different Societies face different challenges which require different interventions to facilitate the
harmonious coexistence of the various societal units and institutions. Among the strategies that
would apply include
Social policy interventions
I would liaise with the various governmental institutions on for the implementation of social
policies to address some of the critical social challenges such as inadequacy and inefficiency of
healthcare services in the local government areas for traumatized patients as well as other
categories of patients. I would also work towards implementation of policies to promote equality
to address economic disparities existing between the various social classes in the society (Ronen
& Freeman, 2007).
Promotion of social interactions

Social interactions such as community-based events have the possibility of enabling people from
different cultures to interact freely which promotes more understanding of the existing cultural
diversities as well as facilitate more appreciation of the various cultural differences. I will work
towards facilitating such community based social events to address cultural issues (Turner,2007).
Q12. Discuss two strategies how support providers might revise aspects of their work
undertaken or the services provided to better address social and cultural issues and
improve outcomes for service users such as Anuk.
Increasing coverage for service delivery
They can do this by rolling out their services beyond their traditional areas of operation such as
in the local government areas so that there will be no discontinuity of service provision when a
patient is referred from one service provider to another as it was the case with Anuk.
Revenue Cycle Management
Among the challenges that confront service users are paying for services offered by support
providers. A high-quality revenue management system can be adapted to address the related
financial challenges that confront patients such as Anuk. Such a system would enable the Service
providers to easily populate medical claim codes hence removing the burden of payments from
the patients, hence improving their ability to acquire services and general experience (Corey,
Corey & Corey, 2016).
Conclusion
In conclusion negative experiences in an individual’s life can have a significant impact on their
social lives health status. The traumatic experiences experienced by Anuk both during the
Vietnam War and after forceful separation with his family have been the cause of his current
problems. There are several cultural and social issues that exist in the society and which can have

an impact on individual’s life. Both cultural and social issues existing in the society as well as
health services challenges facing people such as Anuk can be addressed through interventions
from different stakeholders.
Reference List
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