The Sanchez Family- Emilia
Emilia is the oldest daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Sanchez. A big part of her childhood was spent helping her mother with house chores and taking care of the younger siblings. She was compliant and quiet until the age of 14 when she started changing. However, her mother could not pay close attention since she experienced stressors, such as caring for the younger siblings and adjusting to a new country with a different culture. Similarly, Emilia’s father was too busy with work. During this time, Emilia started abusing drugs, which continues to date. She has a son, Joey, and while still struggling with substance use disorder, she got pregnant again but opted for an abortion. This greatly offended her family, resulting in their estrangement, as the family believes that she committed a mortal sin, not wanting her at home. Emilia struggles to complete addiction treatment despite making efforts to stop abusing drugs and has challenges finding culturally considerate programs whenever she seeks treatment. She has an inconsistent work history, and even though she is a lawful permanent resident, her drug problems could render her of poor moral character, something that could result in the denial of citizenship under US immigration law. Emilia also has a limited social support system following her estrangement from the family after the abortion. Accordingly, the systems theory is ideal for providing a proper understanding of and addressing Emilia’s needs. This theory evaluates how what affects a member of the system reverberates in the entire system, consequently affecting other family members (Van Hook, 2019). Various systems interconnect to impact the environment. This provides a proper understanding of dynamics and components in the client’s system to help interpret problems and provide the most suitable intervention. The systems theory will be understood in the context of Emilia’s culture, family structure, and resiliency.
Application of the Theoretical Concepts
Culture
Systems theory assesses the things having direct contact with an individual in their immediate environment during childhood, such as siblings and parents. Relationships are bi-directional, implying that other individuals can impact a child within their environment and alter others’ actions and beliefs. Noteworthy, Hispanics place major emphasis on the family unit, and nurturing responsibilities are given to females, particularly the first daughter. According to Longoria et al. (2020), the eldest daughters in Latino homes are expected to take on the caregiving roles of younger siblings, as doing so renders one a good daughter. Caregiving is ingrained in the Latina culture and, therefore, cultivated at an early age through informal, formal, and continuous socialization. Emilia, being the eldest daughter, was undoubtedly expected to care for her younger siblings and help her mother with house chores, a role that she took on obediently, earning her the title of a compliant and quiet child. However, Emilia did not receive as much attention from her parents, and this took part in causing her to rebel, using drugs and alcohol, and this enabled her to get much-needed attention.
Caregiving proves important to Emilia, underscoring her need to gain back custody of her son. Emilia’s culture also greatly influences her help-seeking behaviors and communication patterns. Among Latinos, the family is the natural support system, as family members offer advice and emotional support (Villatoro et al., 2014). However, in Emilia’s case, both parents were emotionally unavailable to offer any form of support for Emilia when she started rebelling. Corporal punishment was used as a solution to stop Emilia’s rebellion, pointing to the authoritarian parenting common in Latino families. Interventions need to be culturally competent, considering the cultural norms, beliefs, and values of Emilia. A cultural understanding of her role in the family will help foster engagement and trust and increase the effectiveness of support services and treatment.
Family Structure
Emilia’s family structure is characterized by limited social support and strained relationships, indicating the need to make use of a family-centered approach. The systems theory explores family dynamics and identifies the resources and strengths of the family system. Within the family, there is a great yearning for intimacy and self-esteem, and hence, the need to provide a climate of safety and congruent communication (Van Hook, 2019). There is a need to help Emilia’s family to meet such yearnings through collaborative efforts. Emilia is estranged from her family, who believe that she committed a mortal sin when she decided to abort her second baby and is, therefore, unwelcome in the family. From the ecomap, it can be noted that Emilia’s parents are sources of conflict or stress for her, and she has limited support from her siblings but has a stronger connection with her son, Joey. This acts as a key resource that can help Emilia as she navigates through finding proper intervention for her substance use disorder.
The systems theory also focuses on individuals’ attempts to differentiate themselves from the rest of the family members, choosing to do so in an emotional manner (Van Hook, 2019). In Emilia’s case, her need for attention from her parents led her to develop a character other than the one that her parents knew (compliant and quiet). This helped her differentiate herself from the rest of the family and affected her emotional regulation. Also, it is important to understand factors such as Emilia’s position as the oldest daughter and the role attached to this position to help during family therapy. Notably, this would allow every member of the family to converse with the therapist, airing out their frustrations as contributed by the family structure as opposed to speaking to other family members. Subsequently, this would help provide an intellectual process as opposed to emotional reactivity regarding the conflicts that arise in the Sanchez family, including the issue of estrangement from parents as caused by Emilia’s abortion and the use of drugs.
Resiliency
The systems theory tends to emphasize resilience promotion in families that face adversity (Dallos & Draper, 2015). Interventions are aimed to enhance coping skills, strengthen familial bonds, and enhance access to community services that can help support the family. It is important to look at the risk, protective, and vulnerability factors that Emilia faces so as to help her. Most of the stresses that families experience are complex circumstances (Van Hook, 2019). In Emilia’s case, the already-existing estrangement from the family, an attempt to take back her son as well as her possible failure to do so are risk factors that could result in the family’s further estrangement and Emilia’s continued use of drugs. Emilia’s continued engagement with friends who use drugs is also a risk factor that is likely to make quitting drugs impossible, posing a threat to her custody of Joey and threatening her ability to obtain citizenship in the US.
The inability to find proper community resources to help her with treatment for the substance use disorder is also a possible risk factor that could prevent her recovery. However, it will be important to address Emilia’s protective factors. For instance, her strong connection to her son and her need to have custody of him can act as a protective factor as it would act as an incentive to stay committed to the treatment of substance use disorder. Emilia’s ability to recover from trauma is something that can be tapped into to help her with the recovery. Even after being estranged from her family after the abortion, Emilia continued to try to seek treatment for her addiction. Emilia also has a strong connection with the community, which can offer economic, social, and educational services that can help her with custody and rehabilitation matters. Emilia is likely to benefit from family cohesion, which is emphasized in Hispanic families, and through family counseling, it is possible for her to regain family support, quit drugs, and be accepted back into the family.
Conclusion
Emilia is the oldest daughter in the Sanchez family. Bound by cultural and family expectations, she took on a caretaker role, helping raise her siblings and helping her mother with housework. By understanding her role in the family, it is possible to explain some patterns of her behavior and the kind of interventions that she requires. In this case, systems theory has been used to strive to understand and provide appropriate intervention for Emilia. The systems theory looks at behavior as influenced by various interconnected factors, and each part plays an integral role in sustaining the whole, and the whole also sustains the parts. Different factors, such as school, friends, and family, play a role in influencing how an individual acts and thinks. In Emilia’s case, the Hispanic culture plays an integral role in defining her outcomes. For instance, as a firstborn daughter, it is expected of her to provide caregiving services to her siblings. However, in return, she fails to receive attention as a child, causing her to rebel. The economic status of her parents makes it hard for her to obtain attention from them, as her father is forced to work all the time, while her mother is busy navigating change in a new country and caring for her other siblings. Other factors, such as the problem-solving and communication techniques used, impacted Emilia’s outcomes. Common to the Hispanic culture, using corporal punishment to deal with problems illustrates an avoidance type of problem-solving, as well as the maintenance of authoritarian parenting styles. Hispanics are also mainly religious; therefore, aspects like the sanctity of life are highly regarded, explaining Emilia’s estrangement from her family. However, family cohesion emphasized among Hispanic families is an important source of family resiliency. Therefore, with the help of family-based counseling, it is possible to help Emilia reconnect with her family and obtain support from family and community to quit drugs and gain custody of her son.
References
Dallos, R., & Draper, R. (2015). Ebook: An introduction to family therapy: Systemic theory and practice. McGraw-Hill Education (UK).
Friedman, B. D., & Allen, K. N. (2011). Systems theory. Theory & practice in clinical social work, 2(3), 3-20.
Longoria, D. A., Rodriguez, N. M., Gonzalez, J. M., & Escobar, R. (2020). Latina daughters and their caregiving roles. Journal of Mental Health and Social Behaviour, 2(1), 120.
Van Hook, M. P. (2019). Social work practice with families: A resiliency-based approach. Oxford University Press, USA.
Villatoro, A. P., Morales, E. S., & Mays, V. M. (2014). Family culture in mental health help-seeking and utilization in a nationally representative sample of Latinos in the United States: The NLAAS. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 84(4), 353.
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Question 
Instructions for Term Paper
Students will complete a written assignment/term paper on the Sanchez family/Interactive case found here: https://www.routledgesw.com/interactive-cases/sanchez/Links to an external site.
To engage with family members, it is important for social workers to clearly understand the framework built around the helping process assessment and understand how to explore the areas in which they need to gain a better understanding. Remember that assessments are key to social work practice and fundamental to interventions. This concept (idea) turns informal observations into scientific inquiry or research methods. Social workers use scientific truths in their practice and research to extend an understanding by applying logic and theory (i.e. theoretical concepts/practice models/interventions/approach).
The Sanchez Family- Emilia
The objective of this term paper for students will be to gain awareness, and knowledge, and to provide a conceptual framework for understanding the characteristics of a member of the Sanchez family. This term paper will allow students to analyze theoretical concepts (ideas) assessed from one family member, and how to conduct inquiry (research) to understand how to apply the theoretical application.
Links to an external site.
Requirements: The term paper will be a 5-page paper (not including the Title Page and Reference Page) and will have a properly formatted APA 7th Edition Title Page and Reference Page. The body of the term paper will need to include the following:
* Introduction- Students will include the case overview of the Sanchez family member they chose to write about along with the theory they believe will fit best for this family member’s specific issues/needs. (After your Title Page, this will be page 1 of the term
paper)
You will then apply the theoretical concepts/application in terms of the following:
o Culture- How does the theory you chose fit with the client’s culture or why do you believe it to be appropriate? Are there any specific issues you need to consider due to the client’s culture? In terms of culture, think about not
just the client’s ethnicity, but also how their culture impacts the way they communicate with each other and their environment, their support systems, their problem-solving strategy, etc. (page 2)
o Family Structure- Why do you believe the theoretical concepts/practice models/interventions you chose work best for this specific family member in terms of their family structure? Think about how you will connect the specific intervention(s) you chose to the issue(s) they are facing. (page 3)
o Resiliency- How do the theoretical concepts/practice models/interventions you chose promote resiliency for the family? I want you to connect your intervention(s) to the issue(s) and explain how they will promote resiliency for
the family. (page 4)