Topic 1 DQ 1
Explain one ritual that your family engages in. The ritual may be significant like
annual holidays, regular occurrences such as family meals, or religious practices
like praying together. What do you think rituals communicate to the family
members?
Hello class and professor,
I think family rituals help strengthen the three characteristics of family systems. First, they
build up family cohesion because they are creating an emotional openness and working
together to create an understanding; second, they build family communication because the
family members work together to express and discuss various topics that change based on the
ritual (Olson et al., 2022). Lastly, they develop a family's flexibility because some rituals can
be used to overcome and adapt to rituals that might not be the happiest or easiest to work
through (Olson et al., 2022). With that being said, I think rituals communicate a bond and show
a connectedness to each other. For example, my family never shared meals, even on holidays,
and I think that looking back on it shows that my family was never very close and struggled to
communicate. However, looking at my boyfriend's family, who share meals almost every night
is like comparing day and night, they are open and discuss things that bother them or even have
basic conversations about how their day was.
Source:
Olson, D., DeFrain, J., & Skogrand, L. (2022). Marriages and families: Intimacy, diversity, and
strengths (10th ed.). McGraw-Hill Higher Education. ISBN-13: 9781260837032
Topic 1 DQ 2
There are a number of different definitions of family. Refer to "The 12 types of Families
(and their characteristics)" Resource to explore the different types. Share the definition
of family that most closely describes your family, and talk about the ways in which
other definitions of family impact (or have the potential to impact) you.
Hello class and professor,
I think that a person's definition of family can change based on their stage of life as well as
outside factors. Personally, I do not look at my blood ties as family. I never had a good
relationship with most of them for various reasons. I do, however, consider my boyfriend, his
family, and some of our friends to be more like a family. I think three of the definitions in the
Explain one ritual that your family engages in. The ritual may be significant like
annual holidays, regular occurrences such as family meals, or religious practices
like praying together. What do you think rituals communicate to the family
members?
Hello class and professor,
I think family rituals help strengthen the three characteristics of family systems. First, they
build up family cohesion because they are creating an emotional openness and working
together to create an understanding; second, they build family communication because the
family members work together to express and discuss various topics that change based on the
ritual (Olson et al., 2022). Lastly, they develop a family's flexibility because some rituals can
be used to overcome and adapt to rituals that might not be the happiest or easiest to work
through (Olson et al., 2022). With that being said, I think rituals communicate a bond and show
a connectedness to each other. For example, my family never shared meals, even on holidays,
and I think that looking back on it shows that my family was never very close and struggled to
communicate. However, looking at my boyfriend's family, who share meals almost every night
is like comparing day and night, they are open and discuss things that bother them or even have
basic conversations about how their day was.
Source:
Olson, D., DeFrain, J., & Skogrand, L. (2022). Marriages and families: Intimacy, diversity, and
strengths (10th ed.). McGraw-Hill Higher Education. ISBN-13: 9781260837032
Topic 1 DQ 2
There are a number of different definitions of family. Refer to "The 12 types of Families
(and their characteristics)" Resource to explore the different types. Share the definition
of family that most closely describes your family, and talk about the ways in which
other definitions of family impact (or have the potential to impact) you.
Hello class and professor,
I think that a person's definition of family can change based on their stage of life as well as
outside factors. Personally, I do not look at my blood ties as family. I never had a good
relationship with most of them for various reasons. I do, however, consider my boyfriend, his
family, and some of our friends to be more like a family. I think three of the definitions in the
