What I learned this Week

The main thing I learned this week is that all families have rules.  Some rules are unspoken like don't text at the dinner table.  The family is a system and I like how it is said that the family as a whole is greater than the sum of its parts.  This to me means that the relationships between members in a family make the family who they are.  There are boundaries in families and the boundaries decide how close each individual in the family is going to be to each other.

There are four theories that affect families.  The first one is the exchange theory.  This means that you give and take in relationships.  I believe this theory because I want to marry someone who makes me smile and I gain more from the relationship then loosing.  The next theory is symbolic interaction and this means that all behavior has meaning.  An example is that you say something to your friend and they raise their eyebrows.  This could mean that they don't understand or are surprised at what you said.  All symbols have meanings and it can sometimes be hard to understand what people mean.  Its important to communicate through words because body language is 65% of communication and people will believe your body language over your words.  Another theory is the systems theory.  This means that the whole family is greater than the member.  Families need to work together and they will be more happy when they are conscious of other family members needs.  The last theory is conflict theory.  Families can have conflicts if there are limited resources.  Families have to balance their resources like time to have a happy atmosphere.