Sociology: Family Issues - Case Study, Intervention, Reflection

This sociology report analyzes a case study of a single-parent family, focusing on the challenges and issues arising from the introduction of a new partner. The report examines the family's dynamics, particularly the impact of the new partner's authoritative behavior on the children and the mother's emotional state. It applies sociological perspectives, such as the concept of permissive parenting, to understand the family's situation. The report assesses the reasons behind the new partner's behavior, considering both personality traits and potential motivations. It also evaluates the children's reactions and provides recommendations for intervention, including open communication and understanding between family members. The report emphasizes the importance of addressing the children's needs and providing them with a clear understanding of the situation. The report highlights the role of the mother in facilitating acceptance and understanding within the family and suggests strategies for fostering a harmonious family environment. The report concludes by recommending counseling to improve family dynamics.

Running head: SOCIOLOGY: FAMILY ISSUES
SOCIOLOGY: FAMILY ISSUES
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author Note

SOCIOLOGY: FAMILY ISSUES 1
Sociologists and anthropologists have mentioned about different kinds of families that
exist in the world. Family, according to sociological terms, can be defined as an intimate,
domestic group of people that are related or connected to one another with the factors such as
bond of blood, sexual mating and legal or statutory commitments and relationships (Widmer,
2016). However, in the global world, the well defined position of family has been fading with the
reversion of gender roles and inclusion of neo- liberalization in capitalist economy. Factors such
as modernization, industrialization and urbanization of the society has resulted into disintegration
of the so called traditional form of family and a new form of family has been formed, with a
reversal in the typical or quintessential gender role and economic relations along with other
socio- political or sociological relationship reversal (Widmer, 2016). The respective paper is an
analysis and evaluation of a case study provided in the assignment, where the case study has to
be analyzed and evaluated according to the different approaches, perspectives and models in
order to find out the problems, issues and the conflicts that the family might have been facing
along with necessary recommendations for them so that the families again start existing with
peace, tranquility and harmony with each other.
Families, according to sociological terms, can be defined as an intimate, domestic group
of people that are related or connected to one another with the factors such as bond of blood,
sexual mating and legal or statutory commitments and relationships. The family, in a society, is
also considered to be the first unit of socialization among the human beings, irrespective of their
age, gender and abilities. Therefore, families are of utmost importance in a society (Widmer,
2016).

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Case 2
The respective case study talks about a single parent family where the mother had been
completely given the responsibility of her three children after she got separated from her
husband/ better-half/ partner. Initially, the woman had been facing a tough time but gradually, as
she came close to a man whom she dated for quite a lot of time, she decided to rebuild a
relationship with him. However, his partner showed certain inconvenient authoritative behavior
which was not liked by the woman and she felt the behavior to be highly obnoxious and toxic.
Therefore, in order to end it, she tried to talk clearly with her partner so that the matter could
have been solved. However, the matter worsened. Adam and Emily’s relationship has been
turning towards a dead end and the most important factor that Emily feels that might be hurting
her family is over strictness and bossy attitude of Adam on her children, which the children
apparently did not like. In such case, Emily, who has been a single mother for quite a long time,
is supposed that she might have been dating Adams in the later years in order to receive love,
warmth and support for her family. Therefore, it can also be said that the family has supposedly
become dysfunctional after the entry of the new member in the family, Adam.
Intervention: With the help of certain problem solving model for families, the matter might be
solved. The most obvious and relative problem solving model for single parent family that can be
utilized in the respective case is Permissive Parenting Style. “Permissive parenting style” can be
termed as a special kind of parenting style where the parents view themselves as the friends of
the children and not a caregiver, a mother/ father who would exhibit their authority and dictate
terms on the children. The Permissive Parenting style might be well understood where the

SOCIOLOGY: FAMILY ISSUES 3
children have the freedom to perform the activities in the house as well as outside the house
according to their will and in such parenting styles, the parents take the role of “hands off”
parenting approach, where they see to it that the child, through his or her mistakes, is able to
learn new ideas, perspectives and lessons in life (Millings et al., 2013).
Condition of Emily
Family: Separated from husband due to marital issues.
Greater family: Still unknown, occasional contact with her father, generally Emily is
completely responsible for the bringing up and care giving of her children with very little or
completely no help from her greater family, which includes her mother, father and siblings,
supposedly.
Family income: Emily is the only breadwinner of the family of her and her three children
Recent commitments: Adam, whom she had been taking for a few days and therefore, decided
to stay and have family with him
Social Status: Single mother with three children, only breadwinner of the family, no male
support in the family as well as no basic support from the greater family of her including her
parents or her siblings.
Counsellor’s guide
Reasons for Adam behaving in such manner: Even though it has to be remembered that Adam
was not a part of the family and not a father to the children, yet it can be understood that there
are two reasons why Adams had been behaving in an authoritative manner. The first reason what
I believe as a part of my practice and experience with various clients, is that Adam is an

SOCIOLOGY: FAMILY ISSUES 4
authoritative person who likes to dominate on the others near him. According to my experience
and understanding of the case, most probably, an authoritative man who likes dominating the
other people in his life is not necessarily a toxic personality, even though toxic personalities have
the habit of dominating others. An authoritative person sometimes tries to show authority
towards others in order to protect them and safeguard them from harmful activities and
consequences (Adorno et al., 2019). The second reason, I believe, why Adam had been
authoritative towards the children can be the nascent and hidden desire of Adam to become a
father, a caregiver and a protector and having a family. It often happens, as I have seen in some
cases of my profession, that men sometimes develop strong fatherly feelings towards the person
whom they love or towards the children of the person whom they love. They start considering
them their own children and since men had been subconsciously taught to become the father, the
creator, the initiator and the protector, therefore, men, after a certain age, seek for a family where
they would take up the role of the father. Men often depict or exhibit their love, affection and
compassionate actions and reactions in different ways, and very differently from that of the
women, according to sociologists (Bibi et al., 2013). The authoritarian men often dream of
becoming great fathers in their later life and in their subconscious mind, they appear to be having
certain deep fatherly feelings and such feelings come out of them only when they are given the
chance to have or possess a family. In the respective case, the family where he was included was
a virtual family, but even though it was a virtual family, he considered it to be his real family and
therefore, behaved in an authoritarian way, similar to what the fathers do to their sons and
daughters. However, it also has to be remembered that Adam did not have the intention to
understand whether the children had any kind of respect or disrespect for him or not. However,
such action depicts that maybe he never thought of taking the permission or opinion of the

SOCIOLOGY: FAMILY ISSUES 5
children. There can be two probabilities for such action. The first one includes that Adam is
authoritarian and did not think of the children’s issues or expectations. Secondly, Adam had deep
love and affection towards the children of Emily which made him think that the children had
automatically accepted him and therefore, he can take or assume the role of the protector and
caregiver, the role of father in the family. In a patriarchal society, where the division of labor
has been generalized and the women are considered to be getting themselves more affectionate
than the men, the man of the house might feel alienated from the depiction of affection as certain
culture considers it “unmanly” or “womanish”. However, men who love and feel their sons and
daughters to be adorable often depict their love, care and affection with the help of wearing the
mask of an authoritative and dominating father. Therefore, it can be said that either Adam is an
authoritative person by nature or he has deep fatherly feelings and dreams within him which has
made him to be turning authoritative or authoritarian towards his children. Therefore, I think that
Emily should stop complaining about Adam unless it is too necessary and start rethinking and
understanding Adam in order to survive with him happily as a family.
Assessment of the children: The children seemed to be moderately disinterested to listen to
whatever Adam told them to do. The children have assumed that Adam might be having “bossy
attitude” towards them sometimes, not always. Children are moderately happy with Adam and
they have been comfortable as well as neutral with the ambience of their family where their
mother has been sharing their rooms and house with a separate person who was not even their
family. Children also has to remember that Adam did not have the intention to understand
whether the children had any kind of respect or disrespect for him or not. However, such action
depicts that maybe he never thought of taking the permission or opinion of the children. There
can be two probabilities for such action. The first one includes that Adam is authoritarian and did

SOCIOLOGY: FAMILY ISSUES 6
not think of the children’s issues or expectations. Secondly, Adam had deep love and affection
towards the children of Emily which made him think that the children had automatically
accepted him and therefore, he can take or assume the role of the protector and caregiver, the
role of father in the family. The children have to be provided with clear picture of the intentions
of Adam and his behavior towards them. There are a plethora of reasons why children do not like
the presence of the foster fathers in their lives. One of the main reasons are that children do not
understand or try to understand them. As the history of the case is scrutinized, it has been seen
that Emily is the only caregiver of the children in her family, which included three children and
Emily being the only breadwinner of the family. Such actions, when the children observed, had
created certain kind of impact on the mind of the little ones as at a very tender age, the children
had come to see what they should not have seen, such as the psychological issues their mother
has faced when their parents got divorced or separated. Such actions have created a deep impact
in the mind of the children and maybe due to such reasons, they have become completely rigid
and non- flexible towards the new member, the second father who has been introduced by their
mother to the family. A child must learn to lose graciously; how to pay a compliment and how to
accept one; and the importance of truth and reliability (Widmer, 2016). It is the job of Emily to
provide a broader horizon to her children and teach them that bygone days have passed and they
should learn to accept the new members of the family who are always not harmful. I would like
to request Emily and Adam to sit with their children and explain to them the importance of
fathers in the family so that they understand the importance of Adam and accept him gracefully
within them.
Assessment of Emily: After speaking to Emily and examining her I can deduce that As Emily
had already had a broken marriage with a burden of three children from her side whom she alone

SOCIOLOGY: FAMILY ISSUES 7
needs to handle, being a middle aged woman, she might be suffering from depression, desolution
as well as psychosomatic problems or issues that might have caused her repeated and
unimportant anger towards Adam, her partner. It has to be understood that Emily is a single
working mother who has to face a plethora of mental and physical hardships and drainage which
is affecting her psychologically by making her cranky. Therefore, Adam is also required to take
care of the situation, understand Emily and the ordeals she might be facing throughout the
journey of her life and as a newcomer in her life with a designation of her partner, it is the duty
and responsibility of Adam to understand Emily and rather showing dissatisfaction, he can
actually help out Emily by talking to her clearly about what has happened, where is she facing
problems and what can be done for the solution.
Solution recommended: First and foremost, Adam and Emily is required to discuss the matters
together in a calm, composed and tranquil way directly with each other. Throughout my practice
as a social worker, I have faced many conflicts within families which have been solved by proper
interpersonal communication. So I believe that Adam and Emily need to have a clear
interpersonal communication in order to develop interpersonal relationship with each other.
Interpersonal communicators, who are often a part of interpersonal relationship, are the two
individuals who are independent as well as committed towards each other who have been placed
with each other to receive and provide feedback to one another for a particular reason. In
interpersonal relationships, two participants are interdependent on each other, which means that
both of them have a certain magnitude of effect on each other’s state and being, where the
behavior of each affects the outcomes of the other. Throughout my practice as a social counselor,
I have realized that the individuals who take part in the respective interpersonal communication
interact with each other in a series of interactions that are interrelated and affect each other,

SOCIOLOGY: FAMILY ISSUES 8
which means that the communication between each other are either important or unimportant.
Individuals form many different kinds of relationships with other people, some of which are
intimate and close (e.g., parent–child, spouse–spouse, friendships) and others which are not
intimate and close (e.g., neighbor, teacher–student). In the respective case, Adam and Emily
would be required to be communicating with each other in order to ventilate their grievances
regarding the matter where she is facing anger and dissatisfaction. Most of the research that have
been done on interpersonal communication and relationships has focused on those relationships
that are close, intimate, and have high interdependence, which are somewhat similar to the
relationship between Adam and Emily. Therefore, it can be said by me that an effective
interpersonal communication in a dysfunctional or problematic interpersonal relationship can
diminish even the basic and the most malicious problems between the couples, irrespective of
having a marital or a co- habilitation relationship. According to me, I should advise Adam and
Emily to spend quality time with each other, question each other and try to figure out what kind
of problem they might be going through and make sincere efforts within themselves to avoid
such issues or solve them. Emily and Adam is also requested to provide proper care and affection
to the children. A child must learn to lose graciously; how to pay a compliment and how to
accept one; and the importance of truth and reliability. It is the job of Emily to provide a broader
horizon to her children and teach them that bygone days have passed and they should learn to
accept the new members of the family who are always not harmful. I would like to request Emily
and Adam to sit with their children and explain to them the importance of fathers in the family so
that they understand the importance of Adam and accept him gracefully within them.
Reflection as a counselor: The assignment provided to me this time was quite struggling and I
had to ordeal for three weeks by using proper research papers, books and journals to imbibe the

SOCIOLOGY: FAMILY ISSUES 9
problem, understand it, get into the problem along with the client and provide a proper solution
to it. I worked hard on the respective assignment than what I thought I originally have to do. The
last semester of my graduation program of social work was hectic and exhausting, however, the
knowledge I imbibed through the semester as well as the course which I had taken were utilized
by me in the respective case. Throughout my degree course program, I had come across different
cases in my internships and alternative profession. However, when I received the respective case
as an assignment, I spent a lot of time thinking about where to start with family assessment. I had
utilized different books, journals and online videos of eminent counselors, social workers and
psychologists to dive deep into the matter. I kept searching for the perfect assessment framework
that would encompass the whole family unit but unfortunately, I was not able to find a credible
one. However, with the help of certain books that I have read on interpersonal communication
and relationships in families and collective groups, I realized that the only way by which the
couples can be saved from being separated is to provide them with the lessons of interpersonal
communication and how to achieve a healthy interpersonal relationship. Throughout my practice
as a social worker, I have faced many conflicts within families which have been solved by proper
interpersonal communication. So I believe that Adam and Emily need to have a clear
interpersonal communication in order to develop interpersonal relationship with each other. The
respective case has immensely helped me in understanding family relations in a better way and
as a social worker, I can confidently state that I have developed myself personally as well as
professionally.
The respective paper concludes to be an analysis and evaluation of a case study provided
in the assignment, where the case studies have to be analyzed and evaluated according to the

SOCIOLOGY: FAMILY ISSUES 10
different approaches, perspectives and models in order to find out the problems, issues and the
conflicts that the family might have been facing along with necessary recommendations for them
so that the families again start existing with peace, tranquility and harmony with each other.

SOCIOLOGY: FAMILY ISSUES 11
References:
Adorno, T., Frenkel-Brunswik, E., Sanford, R. N., & Levinson, D. J. (2019). The authoritarian
personality. Verso.
Bales, R. F., & Parsons, T. (2014). Family: Socialization and interaction process. routledge.
Bibi, F., Chaudhry, A. G., Awan, E. A., & Tariq, B. (2013). Contribution of parenting style in
life domain of children. IOSR Journal of humanities and social science (IOSR-JHSS),
12(2), 91-95.
Manly, J. T., Oshri, A., Lynch, M., Herzog, M., & Wortel, S. (2013). Child neglect and the
development of externalizing behavior problems: Associations with maternal drug
dependence and neighborhood crime. Child maltreatment, 18(1), 17-29.
Millings, A., Walsh, J., Hepper, E., & O’Brien, M. (2013). Good partner, good parent:
Responsiveness mediates the link between romantic attachment and parenting style.
Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 39(2), 170-180.
Widmer, E. D. (2016). Family configurations: A structural approach to family diversity.
Routledge.