Chapter 15

1. Chapter 15 Family Stress, Crises and Resilience

2. Chapter Outline • Theoretical Perspectives on Family Stress and Crisis • What Precipitates a Family Crisis? • The Course of a Family Crisis

3. Chapter Outline • Family Stress, Crisis, Adjustment and Adaptation: A Theoretical Model • Meeting Crises Creatively • Crisis: Disaster or Opportunity

4. Definition of Crisis • Crisis involves change. • A crisis is a turning point with the potential for positive effects, negative effects, or both. • A crisis is a time of relative instability.

5. Types of Stressors • Addition of a family member. • Loss of a family member. • Sudden change in income or social statues. • Ongoing family conflict. • Daily family hassles.

7. Types of Stressors • Ambiguous loss • physically absent but still part of the family (divorce, missing in action). • physically present, but emotionally absent (drug /alcohol addiction).

8. Types of Stressors • Caring for a dependent or disabled family member. • Demoralizing events - job loss, unwanted pregnancy, poverty, homelessness, having one’s child in foster care, mental illness, criminal prosecution.

9. Course of a Family Crisis • The event that caused the crisis. • Period of disorganization that follows. • Reorganization or recovery phase after the family reaches a low point.

10. Patterns of Family Adaptation to Crisis

11. Divorce As a Family Adjustment to Crisis and As a Crisis in Itself

12. ABC-X Model of Family Crisis • A - stressor event interacting with • B -family’s ability to cope with a crisis interacting with • C - family’s appraisal of the stressor event produces • X - the crisis.

14. Factors in Defininga Stressful Event • The nature of the stressor. • The degree of hardship or the kind of problems the stressor creates. • The families previous successful experience in the event crises. • Childhood legacies of adult family members.

15. Meeting Crisis Creatively • A positive outlook • Spiritual Values and Support Groups • Open, Supportive Communication • Adaptability • Informal Social Support • An Extended Family • Community Resources

16. Quick Quiz

17. 1. The text points out that a family member’s injury or illness, or a death in the family is a source of family • stress. • alienation. • disgruntlement. • panic.

18. Answer: a • The text points out that a family member’s injury or illness, or a death in the family is a source of family stress.

19. 2. Which of the following is NOT one of the types of stressors examined in the text? • daily family hassles • demoralizing events • conflict over family roles • gradual change

20. Answer: d • Gradual change is NOT one of the types of stressors examined in the text.

21. 3. In the ABC-X model of family crisis, the “B” represents • the family’s ability to cope with a crisis, their crisis-meeting resources. • the family’s appraisal of the stressor event. • the stressor event. • the crisis.

22. Answer: a • In the ABC-X model of family crisis, the “B” represents the family’s ability to cope with a crisis, their crisis-meeting resources.

23. 4. In the ABC-X model of family crisis, the “C” represents • the stressor event. • the crisis. • the family’s ability to cope with a crisis, their crisis meeting resources. • the family’s appraisal of the stressor event.

24. Answer: d • In the ABC-X model of family crisis, the “C” represents the family’s appraisal of the stressor event.