EXAM 3 FAMILY DIVERSITY

Psychological effects does infertility have on individuals and couples?

-profound sense of grief and loss

-feelings of hopelessness

-decreased life satisfaction

-reduced self-esteem

-feelings of inadequacy

-depression and anxiety

-feeling stigmatized

-sense of role failure

What relationship effects does infertility have on individuals and couples?

-reduced sexual pleasure and intimacy

-decreased sexual desire

-increased marital stress

-higher risk of affairs and divorce

-communication challenges between partners

-potential withdrawal from each other

what physical effects does infertility have on individuals and couples?

-invasive medical treatments

-hormonal changes

-sexual dysfunction

-physical exhortation

-medical procedure side effect

What are women more likely to do when facing infertility?

-seek social support

-focus on emotional costs

-experience deeper sense of role failure

What are men more likely to when facing infertility?

-approach infertility as a problem to solve

-keep feelings internalized

-withdrawn emotionally

What are social support factors facilitate coping in couples experiencing infertility?

-connecting with others who have similar experiences

-having supportive family and friends

-participating in support groups

-sharing experiences with understanding listeners

What are some psychological strategies that facilitate coping in couples experiencing infertility?

-finding a therapist specialized in infertility

-normalizing the experience

-encouraging open communication between partners

-redefining future expectations

-developing positive reinterpretations of life goals

What are some therapeutic interventions that facilitate coping in couples experiencing infertility?

-educating couples about infertility experiences

-helping establish shared perceptions

-assisting in working through ethical dilemmas

-supporting emotional expression

-helping couples create a 5-year plan with/without children

what are some spiritual/personal resources that facilitate coping in couple experiencing infertility?

-religious or spiritual perspectives

-maintaining hope

-developing resilience

-exploring alternative paths to parenthood

What are some medical support that facilitate coping in couples experiencing infertility?

-getting a clear medical diagnosis

-understanding specific fertility challenges

-exploring potential treatment options

-medical interventions that provide clarity

what relationship maintenance that facilitate coping in couples experiencing infertility?

-maintaining vulnerability with each other

-developing mutual understanding

-supporting each other's emotional experiences

-creating shared coping strategies

Therapeutic approaches professionals to help couples facing infertility

-find therapists specialize in infertility counseling

-normalize the infertility experience

-validate emotional challenges

-help couples process grief and loss

-encourage open communication between partners

Communication guidance professionals can do to help couples facing infertility?

-teach sensitive communication techniques

-help couples develop shared coping strategies

-assist in creating support networks

-guide discussions about difficult emotions

psychological support that professionals can do to help couples facing infertility

-recognize diverse emotional responses

-address feelings of inadequacy and failure

-help redefine personal and couple identity

-support mental health management

-provide strategies for managing depression and anxiety

what practical assistance can professionals do to help couples facing infertility?

-educate about medical treatment options

-discuss ethical considerations of fertility treatments

-help navigate complex medical decision-making

-provide resources for decision-making

-provide resources for financial medical support

What relationship maintenance help can professionals do to help couples facing infertility?

-facilitate mutual understanding between partners

-help partners support each other's emotional experiences

-develop strategies to maintain inimacy

-address potential relationship strain

Holistic approach that professionals can do to help couples facing infertility?

-consider cultural and personal beliefs

-respect individual experiences

-provide non-judjemental, compassionate support

-offer alternative perspectives on family planning

race/ethnicity of childfree families

more likely to be white

Education levels of childfree families

-higher education levels

-nearly 50% of women with bachelors, graduate, or professional degrees are childfree

-strong correlation between education and child-free status

Professional profile of childfree families

-dual-income households

-work in professional and managerial roles

-career-focuses individuals

Attitudinal characteristics of childfree families

-less traditional in gender roles

-more liberal attitudes

-less religious compared to couples with couples

generational trends of childfree families

-slight increase in child-free couples over past 20-30 years

-growing societal acceptance of child-free choice

-challenging the pro-natalist assumption that everyone will have children

economic factors of childfree families

-more disposable income

-career advancement prioritized

-economic conditions influencing family planning decisions

geographic concentration of childfree families

-more common in urban and suburban areas

-higher prevalence in regions with more professional opportunities

Trends associated with childfree families

-postponement of marriage (first child)

-reproductive technology-birth control

-women seeking higher education levels

-the higher the womens education level the less likely she is to have children

What is the most important determinant of women's fertility

education level

Women in the workforce

-lack of federal protection for working mothers

-insufficient maternity leave policies

-limited support for women returning to work after childbirth

-significant challenges balancing work and childfree responsibilities

What are three reasons individuals give for being childfree?

-effect on personal and social lives

-lack of desire for children

-fear of failure

Effect on personal and social lives reasons individuals give for being childfree?

-more freedom

-more time together

-children are expensive

fear of failure reasons individuals give for being childfree?

-environment is already strained

-world is a dangerous place

-fear of failing the child

Finances research findings on childfree families

-earn the same or more as couples with children

-discretionary income

career achievement research findings on childfree families

-CF couples more likely to report more time and energy for career

-don't have as many career disruptions

-show greater signs of professional success

gender roles research findings on childfree families

-more likely to show egalitarian relationship

-joint decision making

marital satisfaction research findings on childfree families

-CF have greater marital satisfaction

-more likely to leave if unhappy

-higher breakup rates

-more time to spend together

-easier to reach a consensus

life satisfaction research findings on childfree families

-more time to spend with people/hobbies

-more flexibility, independence, and freedom

-research shows they don't feel regret or lonely

stigma associated with childless and childfree families

-not seen as a "family"

-seem selfish

-seem less sensitive

-maladjusted

-immature-unwilling to undertake responsibility

-unhappy, unfulfilled, live are incomplete

-people they think are child haters

-pronatalist bias

-women report feeling more stigma than men

describe prevalence three types of adoption

significant shift in words of more open adoptions in the last 20-30 years, moving away from the previous model of secret and stigma surrounding adoption

open adoption

-identities of birth and adoptive families is maintained

-95% of private domestic adoptions are now open

-ongoing communication and information sharing occurs

-considered the most transparent approach

closed adoption

-no direct contact between birth and adoptive families

-minimal to no information is shared

-historically more common before recent shifts in adoption practices

-characterized by secrecy and limited information exchange

semi-open/medicated adoption

-intermediate approach between open and closed adoptions

-identifying information is not fully disclosed

-a mediator facilitates communication (eg, agency, caseworker, lawyer)

-communication might occur through: -anonymous email

-mediated information exchange

-sharing non-identifying information

typical adoptees avergae age

6 years old

typical adoptees

-more likely to be adopted by their current foster parents

-approximatley 60% are from non-hispanic white backgrounds

What % of the united states are adopted

2%

in 2013, over how many foster children were eligible for adoption

100,000 children

typical parents

more likely to be: non-hispanic white, couples or single females, 70% have education beyond high school

-single fathers face more discrimination in adoption processes

Communication patterns

adoptive families with better communication tend to show higher levels of adjustment for their children. Open. supportive communication helps adopted children navigate their identity formation and emotional challenges

Celebration of family milestones

adoptive families often create meaningful rituals, such as celebrating adoption day, which helps reinforce family bonds and provide a sense of belonging for adopted children

resilience and positive language for adoptive families

-adoptive families demonstrate resilience by using positive, affirming language about adoption (e.g biological parent" instead of "natural parent") and by being prepared to address intrusive questions while maintaining clear family boundaries. They work to integrate the child's full identity, including potential connections to birth families, in a supportive manner

parent-child conflict dynamics for adoptive families

-adoptive families tend to experience more parent-child conflict during adolenscence

-conflict often stems from the adopted adolescent's more complex behavioral patterns

-both mothers and adolescents report higher levels of conflict compared to non-adopted families

communication adjustment for adopted families

-better family communications patterns predict higher levels of adjustment for adopted children

-open dialogue about adoption and family history is crucial

-families that incorporate postivive language and discuss adoption openly tend to have better outcomes

identity integration dynamics for adopted families

adoptive families help children integrate their identity by:

-celebrating adoption milestones

-discussing birth family history postively

-supporting the child's curiosity about their origins

-helping children understand similarities and differences between themselves and family members

support and help-seeking for adoptive families

-adoptive families are more likely to seek psychiatric or professional help if needed

-they tend to be proactive in addressing potential behavioral or emotional challenges

boundary management for adoptive families

-families develop strategies to handle intrusive questions about adoption

-they work to protect all children in the family system through thoughtful responses

-they help adopted children develop resilience in managing eternal inquiries

Research findings regarding adoptees behavioral characteristics

-higher levels of externalizing behaviors

-similar IQs but potentially worse academic performance

-more likely to show prosocial behaviors

-potential for higher delinquency and drug use rates

research findings regarding adoptees identity formation

-more complex individuation process

-ongoing integration of adoption experience into personal identity

-higher parent-child conflict during adolescence

-often seek information about birth family, especially medical history

research findings on adoptive parens family dynamics

-more likely to seek psychiatric treatment for children

-better communication predict better child adjustment

-generally maintain close relationships with adopted children

-need to support child's identity exploration

research findings on birth parents relationship dynamics

-satisfaction with birth family contact predicts less externalizing behavior

-some adoptees desire to understand and connect with birth family

-medical history becomes increasingly important as adoptees age

overall reseach findings

-adoption outcomes depend on multiple risk factors

-early minimization of negative experiences can reduce developmental challenges

-positive family communication and language are crucial

-individual experiences vary significantly

describe three ways we can foster resilience among adoptive families

1. positive language

2 celebration of adoption milestones

3. communication and boundary management

How much of the total military force are 25 years or younger

40%

how much of the military force are women

17%

How much of the total military force are married?

50%

there are more family members than military members true or false

true

how much of the military are cucasian

70%

What % of the military is african american

17%

What % of the military is latinx or hispanic

13.5%

the general stressors military families face

-frequent relocations

-long work hours

-physical separation

-deployment

-homecoming

-threat of injury or death

-difficulty staying in touch with family and friends

-unfamiliar surroundings

-career difficulties for the spouse

-strain on marriage

stressors families face during pre-deployment

-shock

-anger

-anticipation of loss

-conflict within family

-withdrawn (both members and family)

-tendency to put life on hold

-need to talk about money and will

non-deployed family members mental health contribiting factor of stress for children during and following parental deployment

-the most important piece to help children during this time, the more stable the parent is the more stable the child will be

how many more time as likely are parents to report child symptoms when they reported high levels of stress for themselves

7x as likely

how many times as likely were parents to report child symptoms when they felt supported by the military

only 1/3rd

gender contributing factors for children during and following parental deployment

-girls of all ages reported more issues with school, family, and peers

-more likely to step into roles when parents are deployed (more chores, etc.)

age of child contributing factors of stress for children during and following parental deployment

-mixed results

-recent meta-analysis show most negative effects during 6-11 years old

-other studies said we don't have enough data for 0-5 years old or adolescence

-later adolescence: parents report more problems with teens

time deployed contributing factors of stress for children during and following parental deployment

-the longer deployment, the more challenges children experience

-ture for deployment and homecoming-harder transition

place of residence contributing factor of stress for children and following parental deployment

-children connected to military base are less affected because they have a support system

-less affected to children in non-military communities

identify the top stressors spouses of military personnel face during deployment

-honeymoon period

-PTSD

-reintegration

-caregiver burden

honeymoon period spouses of military personnel face during deployment

-immediately following homecoming families experience euphoric feelings, can be short lived

post traumatic stress disorder for military

to help ptsd- need to have strong support from therapist, let partner work through with them and don't pressure them to share- this can be harmful`

reintegration from the military

-changing roles, spouse feel autonomy when military member is gone, so they feel like they lose some independence

What can professionals do to help military families prepare for each stage of deployment

-create social support

-inform them of numerous programs such as operation purple camps

-present books and DVDs to inform children and adults about the military