CAFS Module 3

Australian Census Dictionary glossary definition of family

Two or more persons, one of whom is at least 15 years of age, who are related by blood, marriage (registered or de facto), adoption, step or fostering, & who are usually resident in the same household.

what are the family structures

• adoptive

• blended

• childless

• communal

• de facto

• extended

• foster

• nusclear

• same-sex couple

• sole parent

• kinship

describe adoptive family structure

• Family that contains at least one adopted child & at least one adoptive parent

• Provides permanent care for children unable to live with biological families

• Process where full parental rights & responsibilities for a child are legally transferred

• Purpose: provide nurturing, safe, permanent family for children & young people

describe blended family structure + benefits & challenges

• Family unit where one or both parents have children from previous relationship, but have combined to form new family

• Same sex or heterosexual & many not have children with each other

• Children are not biologically related to or adopted by parents’ spouse

• Benefits: 

  • Bonus role models

  • Immediate peer & sibling socialisation

• Challenges: 

  • Dealing with grief/loss associated with family break-up

  • Decision-making process more difficult as step-parents have no legal rights over stepchild

describe childless family structure + positive & negative

• Includes two adult partners who do not have children

  • May be a conscious choice or infertile & unable to conceive

    • Infertility: inability to conceive a pregnancy after 12 months of unprotected sexual intercourse (affects 1 in 6 Australian couples of reproductive age)

• Positive (of having children): 

  • Fulfillment of passing down traditions/values

  • Unconditional love

• Negative: 

  • loss/sacrifice of personal life & hobbies

  • Financial & emotional stress

describe communal family structure + advantages & disadvantages

• Group of families/individuals, related/unrelated, who live together & share resources

• Reasons for choice of communal structure:

  • Migrants who move to Aus live communally to save money

  • Conflict within immediate family

  • Having close-knit relationship with multiple people heightens sense of safety & security

• Advantages 

  • Dividing costs of living between many individuals lowers cost of living

  • Shared responsibility reduces stress & exhaustion

• Disadvantages 

  • Loss of privacy

  • conflict/tension within household are severe

describe de facto family structure

• Consists of two partners of same/opposite sex living together but not legally married with/without children

• A family is considered de facto due to various circumstances including:

  • Duration of relationship

  • Nature of residence

  • Financial agreements they have

  • Care & support of any children or dependents

• Prevalence of de facto families doubled due to increase in divorce rates & social acceptance of society

describe extended family structure & give advantages & disadvantages

• Described as at least one core family plus at least one relative living in same house

• Most common in various cultures around the world

• Collectivist cultures (cultures that focus on the interdependence amongst individuals) favour the extended family structure over other living arrangements

• Advantages 

  • Allow older relatives to pass down values, beliefs, traditions

  • Built-in kinship: immediate support for major events (e.g. marriage, birth)

• Disadvantages 

  • Forced to conform to family expectations

  • Prioritises certain members (e.g. eldest son) → unequal distribution of resources

describe foster care

• Foster care: children & young people, through no fault of their own, cannot live with biological parents/family

• Reasons for becoming foster carer

  • Desire to provide safe & nurturing environment for vulnerable children

  • Fulfillment of need to contribute to community

  • Reward of supporting children with trauma

• Types of care provided by foster carer

  • Long term

  • Short term

  • Emergency

  • Part-time (respite)

  • Therapeutic foster

describe kinship family structure

• Australian Aboriginal kinship care is provided by a relative, person considered family or close friend or is a member of the child or young person’s community

• According to Department of Communities, Child Safety & Disability Services: for ATSI children, a kinship carer may be another Indigenous person who is a member of the community, a compatible community or from the same language group

describe nuclear family structure

• Described as a husband & wife & their children

• Prevalence of nuclear families slowly declining in Australia

  • According to ABS Marriages & Divorces publication, 2020 saw the annual rate of marriages decrease by 30.8%

  • Reasons for decrease:

    • High cost of living makes marriage impossible

    • More de facto due to changing societal views (does not feel the need to get married)

describe same-sex couple family structure

• When two people of the same sex are in a relationship with/without children

• Number of same-sex couples more than tripled due to growing social acceptance

  • On December 9 2017, the Marriage Act in Australia was changed to allow any two people the right to marry

describe sole-parent family structure

• Consists of a lone parent with at least one child of any age (dependent or non-dependent) living in the same household

• Formed due to:

  • divorce/separation

  • Death

  • Unplanned pregnancy

  • Long-term illness

  • imprisonment

how do family structures satisfy the need for safety & security?

• This need covers physical, emotional & financial aspects

• Housing provides safety & security

  • When a family has access to shelter in an area considered safe, their safety & security needs are met

• For adults, stable & secure employment is important

  • Provides financial support → element of security because family members know they will have money to afford food, pay mortgage, schooling, & recreational needs → ensure emotional security

how do family structures satisfy the need for health?

• Families who are health conscious: 

  • Diets consist of foods with complex carbohydrates, high in fibre, low in fat/salt/sugar

  • Exercise will be prioritized parents take time for physical activity & children may participate in organised sport

• Health choices will rely on financial resources; private health care may be difficult to afford for low-income earners

how do family structures satisfy the need for education?

• Regardless of family structure & financial resources, all children aged 5-17 must be in some form of government approved schooling

• Value placed on education will impact on where a child goes to school & the rules & limits set regarding school & homework

how do family structures satisfy the need for sense of identity?

• Related to relationships around you & how you are able to form them

• As dependents age, their personalities & identities evolve due to other influences e.g. peer groups, school, media culture (customs, languages, traditions will influence friendships, hobbies, extracurricular activities)

how do family structures satisfy the need for employment?

• A person’s earning power & employment opportunities are related to their skills & abilities rather than family structure

• Family structure may influence work hours & patterns e.g. full time, part time, casual

how do family structures satisfy the need for adequate standard of living?

• No family structure is immune to financial crisis or trauma

• When a family member is unable to work, the family can access government payments to satisfy this need

• Charity groups help financially unstable families but requires families to reach out & seek help

what are relationships between families characterised by?

• Showing respect for others

• Having trust & confidence in one another

• Sharing purpose, intention or aspiration

• Being open & honest in communication

how do family structures adopt the role of building relationships?

• All family structures can foster positive & healthy relationships, but parents must model such relationships for their offspring

• Families with more than one adult: communication regarding discipline, boundaries, goals, values, needs & wants should help establish clear modes of decision making that will best suit needs of family & support ability to effectively use resources

how do family structures promote wellbeing?

• If specific needs of a family are satisfied to a degree & positive relationships are built & maintained, wellbeing among members will be achieved

• Wellbeing is harder to achieve for families who have come through loss, grief & crisis

  • Periods of illbeing will continue until needs are met

define community

Community is ‘a group of people within society, who have common background pr shared interests & who may live in a similar area’

what are the reasons for community formation?

• geographical reasons

• common interest/purpose based

• purpose-based

why do communities form from geographical reasons? + define geographical communities & give an example

• Geographical communities: communities developed as a result of where they are situated

• As geographical locations become urbanised, communities are formed

• People make decisions about where to live based on factors e.g. personal preference, financial resources, available services, employment opportunities

why do communities form from common interest/purpose based? + define interest based communities & give an example

• Interest based communities: communities developed due to a shared interest & needs of individuals

• Can provide sense of satisfaction & belonging; individuals learn from others who are more knowledgeable in their area of interest (e.g. dance skills)

why do communities form from purpose based? + define sexual based communities

• Common community groups emerge based on culture, ethnicity, sexuality, etc.

• Members of cultural & ethnic groups may be part of a community to promote & build upon the shared ethnic culture

• Sexual based communities: communities that include individuals who share the same sexual beliefs & preferences

• Individuals may be looking for sense of belonging & recognition

reliable questions are?

• Easy to understand

• Listed in a logical order

• Use clear & simple language

• Ask only one question at a time

what are the types of reliable questions?

• closed

• open ended

describe closed questions & what it includes

• Closed questions produce limited range of responses but are easier to collate & interpret, include:

  • Check boxes

  • Likert scale (never/sometimes/always)

  • Attitudinal scale (strongly agree → strongly disagree)

  • Questions that only elicit a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer

describe open ended questions

Open ended questions provide the opportunity for an open response not guided by the researcher, a line/space is provided on the questionnaire for the respondent’s answer

define the two ways of collecting data

• Questionnaires: set of formally prepared questions that seek information about knowledge, belief, feelings, opinions, likes, dislikes, completed by the respondent

• Surveys: same as questionnaires, filled in by researcher after asking respondent questions

advantages & disadvantages of questionnaires

• Advantages

  • Quick to distribute to respondents

  • Questions are completed by respondent & avoid interview bias

  • Written record of data is easy to access

• disadvantages

  • Requires respondents to have satisfactory literacy skills

  • Amount of information collected can be limited

  • Researcher has to wait for responses to return

what is the local level of community organisation responsible for?

• Town planning

• Building approvals; local roads, parking, public libraries, public toilets

• Water & sewerage

• Waste removal

• Domestic animals

• Collection of parking fees & tax

how are local taxes collected

• Local taxes (rates) are collected from homeowners based on value of their home

  • Used to pay for the services provided

what is the state/territory level of community organisation responsible for?

• Policing

• Public schools

• Roads & traffic

• Public hospitals (through an agreement with federal government)

• Public housing

• Business regulation

when do state & territories & commonwealth cooperate?

State & territories & commonwealth cooperate where a national approach is needed to ensure laws & services in every state & territory are consistent

what does state/territory level of community organisation collect & receive?

• Collect tax e.g. GST, land tax, payroll tax, stamp duties on transactions like housing sales

• Receive revenue from the Commonwealth

what does the national level of community organisations implement?

laws made by the Commonwealth Parliament

what are the responsibilities of the national level of community organisations & who/what sets them?

• Responsibilities are set out by the Australian Constitute:

  • External trade & commerce

  • Quarantine

  • Currency

  • Marriage

  • Immigration

  • Defence

  • Telecommunications

  • Provision of welfare

what does the national level of community organisations administer?

Administers assistance & welfare programs e.g. Medicare, Centrelink, Job Network

how are global needs promoted? give examples

Global needs (e.g. basic human rights) are promoted through international agencies like the UN & WHO

what has an increase in technological advancements allow?

Increasing technological advancements (e.g. World Wide Web) have made the concept of a global community a reality

how do community groups satisfy specific needs?

• Most highly prioritised role for community groups to adopt is the providing of resources required to achieve adequate standard of living

• Food many be available in numerous forms e.g. fresh food or pre-packaged during crisis or emergency relief periods, daily drop-in centre meals, food parcels

• Shelter services may focus on emergency/temporary accommodation for sufferers of homelessness or domestic violence

• Clothing is commonly collected from donations & re-distributed through ‘opportunity’ shops, often with up-cycling or recycling tips

what are positive & effective relationships within community groups characterised by?

• Respect for each other & support within times of need

• Trust & confidence in each other

• Sharing a purpose, intention, aspiration

• Open & honest in communication

how do community groups promote wellbeing?

Creates equity for those disadvantaged by providing a supportive environment through developing caring relationships, promoting sense of connection & belonging, satisfying specific needs

what are the decision-making processes in communities?

• arbitration

• consensus

• election

• voting

• referendum

describe the decision-making process arbitration

• Process that seeks to resolve dispute

  • Evidence is presented & discussion is had between parties

  • Ruling is made by chairperson (arbitrator) → this decision is legally binding

describe the decision-making process consensus

• Aims to include everyone in decision-making process

  • Opinions are discussed & objections are resolved so widespread agreement is achieved without voting

describe the decision-making process election

• Process gives individuals opportunity to express views & be involved in decision-making process by voting for one option over another

  • Choice may be public or private

describe the decision-making process voting

• Formal expression of an individual’s choice in decision-making process

• for/against proposed motion, candidate, selection of candidate, political party

describe the decision-making process referendum

• Aims to include all adults in an electorate decision-making for important policy proposal or change in constitution

• Requires support of ⅔ majority to be successful

• Declaration of change can only come about if there is double majority vote (more than ½ of population agree to change & ½ of all states must agree)

  • In Aus, 50% of population in 4+ states must agree to change

what are the influences on decision-making?

• legislation

• environmental factors

• lobbyign & community petitions

• protesting

describe how legislation influences decision making

• Governments develop & implement laws

  • Legislative process: proposed laws are introduced into parliament as bills → debated & voted on → passed by members of both houses of parliament → new law

  • Laws provide guidelines for local, state, national community decision-making e.g. protection of natural environment, child protection

describe how environmental factors influence decision making

• Communities have resources to carry out tasks & reach goals

• Decisions must be made on resources after considering impact on environment

• Now more common for communities to experience conflict if decisions contribute to negative effects on environment

• Office of Environment & Heritage (OEH) works with communities to help protect environment

  • OEH has a regulatory role in relation to biodiversity, Aboriginal cultural heritage, waters & rivers, wildlife management, native vegetation

  • OEH undertake active programs to contain & reduce soil degradation & invasive pests & weeds

• Environment Protection Authority (EPA) focuses on minimising pollution/risks to human health

describe how lobbying & community petitions influence decision making & give examples

• Occurs when groups try to influence decisions of local, state, federal policymakers

  • Achieved by various means e.g. letters, emails, texts, banners, protest rallies, community petitions

describe how protesting influences decision making

• Declares opposition to a behaviour/act that a person is otherwise limited in their ability to prevent or avoid

• Australia’s democracy recognizes right to communicate ideas & opinions through peaceful protests & ensures it is balanced against other rights & interests of others & the community

• Must maintain public safety & peace & facilitation of fair & equal access to public areas

• If group wishes to organise protest, they should advise police of time, location, attendance numbers at least 7 days prior so they can organise resources to control traffic, etc

define internal change & give a family & community example

change that happens within the group e.g. marriage (family), Victorian Community in lockdown compared to Australia (community)

define external change & give a family & community example

change in the wider community that has influenced the functioning of a family e.g. legal change; maternity leave entitlements (family), social changes; legalised gay marriage (community)

define planned change & give a family & community example

change that occurs with prior knowledge e.g. retirement (family), changes to public parking (community)

define unplanned change & give a family & community example

change that is unexpected, so a response to the change cannot be prepared in advance e.g. death (family), robbery (community)

define temporary change & give a family & community example

change that lasts for an unspecified period of time e.g. online learning (family), social distancing (community)

define permanent change & give a family & community example

change that lasts forever e.g. serious injuries (family), new buildings (community)

positive & negative outcomes of change in families

• positive

  • Effective financial planning & management

  • Progressive & rewarding effects 

  • Development of resilience, personal strength & empowerment

• negative

  • Severe grief, loss of life, injury

  • Depression, anxiety, poor mental health

  • Extreme financial costs & burden

positive & negative outcomes of change in communities

• positive

  • Increase in employment opportunities

  • Development of new infrastructure

  • New shops, providing greater product variety

• negative

  • Decrease in employment opportunities

  • People leave the community

  • Lack of services → families travel further & spend money in other communities

how does change impact roles individuals adopt in families & communities? give an example

• Family adapting to change may have to evaluate & reallocate responsibilities e.g. if a husband is the breadwinner, a retrenchment may lead on an increase in his responsibilities satisfying specific needs like food shopping or washing

• Roles individuals adopt during times of change within communities will focus on the best outcomes to ensure PBS

what are some environmental changes experienced by communities? give examples

• Some are short, expected & cyclical e.g. seasonal variations in rainfall → responses are planned by governments or community groups to reduce impact of damage

• Unexpected events e.g. disasters can cause trauma, emotional shock, & suffering for members → turning point for the entire community due to the impact on people’s wellbeing

how does legislation impact change on families & communities? give an example

Laws & regulations form a framework for protecting public health, safety & morals, & for advancing the general welfare of the population through the protection of basic human rights e.g. same-sex marriage laws

how can technology enhance wellbeing during change?

• Connecting individuals & communities globally

• Providing services

• Enabling procedures & systems to take place

• Providing access to education