HS 2100 Family Dynamics

Diversity in Family Functioning Knowledge

Answer the questions below by using chapter 2 (Box 2.1) and chapter 3 of your textbook.

1. Gender, race or ethnicity, culture, sexual identity, spirituality and socioeconomic status are powerful influences on personal and family perspectives and behavior patterns.

☐ True

☐ False

2. Developmental tasks refer to activities or experiences that are mastered at different stages in the family life cycle to enable family members to move to the next developmental stage.  

☐ True

☐ False



 

3. Sexist attitudes (discrimination based on gender) and patriarchal (male dominance) can affect family functioning. 

☐ True

☐ False

4. It is NOT important to maintain a multicultural perspective as an HHS worker.  

☐ True

☐ False

5. Men and women always have the same gender role expectations within a family, and they never differ.  

☐ True

☐ False

6. Understanding families requires a grasp of the cultural context (race, ethnic group, religion, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation) in which the family functions and the cultural norms related to the family.  

☐ True

☐ False

7. One way to understand the impact of a family’s cultural heritage on its identity is to learn as much as possible about that specific culture before working with the family.  

☐ True

☐ False

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8. Men and women from different socioeconomic class experience life never differently from each other.  

☐ True

☐ False

9. Culture is shared, learned knowledge, attitudes, and behavior transmitted from one generation to the next.  ☐ True

☐ False



 

10. Couples who become parents must rearrange the family system and renegotiate the role each plays.  

 

☐ True

☐ False

Reflection  

Reflect on what you have learned this week to help you respond to the question below.

11. Explain in your own words what culture is and how families may have or create different cultures for themselves.   

Type answer here

12. Consider someone you know that is culturally different from you. List two traits that make them different from you. Explain why those cultural traits could bring you together or set you apart.

Trait Examples

Explanation

a. Type answer here

Type answer here

b. Type answer here

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13. Two people from families with different cultures decide to join into a committed relationship. List 

two cultural differences they might have, describe the differences and recommend how they might come to agreement.  

Explain a cultural   difference

Description of how   to overcome the difference

a. Type answer here

Type answer here

b. Type answer here

Type answer here

14. Imagine you are a Family Support Coordinator for a social service agency. You work closely with clients making referrals for services and resources to match client needs and you monitor the progress of the service provision. A family you are working with has an older male teenager who is unsure of his gender identity and sexuality. He wants to get a sex change operation when he becomes an adult. The youth is also questioning his sexuality. What type of referral could you would you recommend for the client to address his needs? 

Read the article found here. Describe how you would deal with a client who had a different viewpoint on sexuality that was different than your viewpoint.  

a. Type of referral: Type answer here

b. Explain how you would deal with a situation where your viewpoint on sexuality differs from a client you are working with: Type answer here