Personal Review of Ecological, Transactional, Systems, and Biopsychosocial-Cultural Theories

Personal Review of Ecological, System, and Cultural Contexts
Name
Institution
Personal Review of Ecological, System, and Cultural Contexts
Introduction
The realization of basic social developmental landmarks and the primary life events that normally come alongside them have a big effect on the developing person and that person’s transactions with the environment. In most cases, family and peer-group mezzo systems largely play a big role in the growth of children, their development and behavior. In children, social interaction offers the basis for the personality that an individual acquires in their adulthood. It is impossible for children and their families to operate in a vacuum. The existing macro systems within the environment such as communities, government institutions, and groups, can offer important resources to aid families in dealing with issues and get solutions for challenges that are mostly experienced by children. Imposing macro systems within the social environment can either help or prevent family members from attaining their full potential (Zastrow, & Kirst-Ashman, 2007). This paper presents the ecological, systems, and cultural contexts that have impacted my growth.
Socialization and the Family Environment
Socialization is the process through which children attain knowledge regarding the language, values, manners, regulations, and all the small, intricate pieces of information that are necessary to get by and flourish in a certain society. Even though socialization is a lifelong process, most of it takes place in childhood. Children acquire knowledge on how to interact with other individuals in the society. They must learn which behaviors are acceptable and the ones that are not. Since children are born without knowing anything, the most important socialization happens in childhood (Bardi, & Schwartz, 2003).
Since the lives of children are initially based within their families, the family environment plays an important role in shaping their lives. Ideally, each family environment is unique since each one of them is composed of different individuals. The differences between families happen in different ways with some families living in great opulence while others live in abject poverty. This has a great impact on the way that children from those families are brought up and their adulthood is greatly affected. The family environment in the United States has changed considerably with 77% of children not living with their biological parents. The family environment today is therefore diverse and affects the general upbringing of a child (Arnett, 2010).
Personally, I did not grow up with both my biological parents. In the first two years of my life, my mother was in a verbally and physically abusive relationship with my biological father. My mother was so hardworking and tried everything to fend for her children. My father was however abusive and an alcoholic. Both my parents grew up with their biological parents and it was evident that those parents influenced their upbringing. My grandfather from my father’s side was abusive towards his wife and children and an alcoholic. It was therefore not surprising that my father turned out to be an alcoholic. At the age of 5 years, my mother remarried and we had to relocate to live with my new father. Growing up in these two homes had an effect on me even as an adult. Today, I tend to be emotional due to the emotional suffering that I experienced in the hands of my biological father but I am also resilient due to the resiliency that I adopted from my biological mother and stepfather.
According to Arnett (2010), the present nature of families has made it hard to define what a healthy family is. However, how well families function as well as how they communicate with each other can be used as a measure for a healthy family. Family function entails numerous caregiving functions such as nurturing and offering materials and emotional support to the children. Personally, even though I did not get much support at the onset of my life, my step father made an effort to nurture us and ensure that we were always catered for. Being a strong Christian, my step father ensured that our spiritual and emotional needs were well taken care of and this accounts for my strong spiritual affiliations. Even though my step father was mentally ill, he always ensured that there was good communication within the family and that our needs were well taken care of and as such it is right to claim that our home was healthy. The case was however different in our first home as my father spends most of his time at home abusing my mother physically and emotionally and thus our needs were not met. The support system that my stepfather as well as my biological mother gave us created an environment where we could go to school and hence made me what I am today (Barni, Ranieri, & Scabini, 2012).
Family Systems
In order to comprehend the manner in which a family functions, it is important to examine the family within a systems perspective. Systems theory is applicable to a range of situations, spanning from the internal mechanism of a computer appliance to the systematic functioning in a large organization to the interpersonal relationships in a family. Despite the scenario, comprehending systems theory basics helps an individual to comprehend dynamic relationships among people. Systems theory is important in helping to understand how a family functions. The systems theory also helps in the comprehension of how the family system is interconnected with numerous other systems. Since the family is one system, the members are affected by what happens to the other family members. A system is a combination of elements that create an orderly, interconnected, and functional unit. The notion that a system is a ‘combination of elements’ means that a system can be comprised of any type of things as long as these things have a connection to each other. These things can be people or even symbols in a certain subject. The family is in most cases defined as a system with each member playing an important role in the system. Each member of the family might have a special relationship with another member that is different from how they relate with the other members (Albert, & Ferring, 2012). While growing up, my family system had a great impact on how I functioned and the person I became later on in life.
While growing up, my father did not have a good relationship with my mother. Due to his alcoholic nature, he kept on physically and emotionally assaulting my mother and this had an effect on me. For a long time, I grew up hating my father...