Chapter 2 – The Ecology of Families

TEST BANK

Multiple Choice Questions (15)

  1. The image of family life as portrayed by the public media in thebecame entrenched in the public consciousness as the normative family structure.
  2. 1930s
  3. 1940s
  4. 1950s*
  5. 1960s
  1. The represents the relationships between the members within an individual’s microsystem.
  2. exosystem
  3. mesosystem *
  4. macrosystem
  5. ecosystem
  1. This refers to the changes in one’s social ecological context over time.
  2. chronosystem*
  3. ecodevelopment
  4. cascading effects
  5. metamorphosis
  1. According to the classification of family crises, “school problems” is classified under this heading.
  2. Accession to Marriage
  3. Loss of Membership
  4. Demoralization*
  5. Change in Status
  1. When family interactions deviate from the acceptable range of behaviors, is/are impacted.
  2. boundaries
  3. roles
  4. familial affection
  5. homeostasis*
  1. These are recurrent patterns of behavior by which family members fulfill family functions and needs.
  2. family interdependence
  3. family roles *
  4. family rules
  5. family boundaries
  1. This refers to one’s personal awareness of time as one is going through one’s unique life cycle.
  2. generational time
  3. ontogenetic time*
  4. historical time
  5. chronological time
  1. In a new relationship, the couple begins to embark on creating its own new and unique
  2. couple narrative.*
  3. social ecology.
  4. economic boundary.
  5. social network.
  1. The family stage in which parents have to abdicate some of their parental authority and share with other institutions is
  2. families with young children.
  3. families with school-aged children.*
  4. families with teenagers.
  5. families with young people leaving home.
  1. The developmental stressors that reflect life cycle transitions are called
  2. life cycle stressors.
  3. piled-up stressors.
  4. vertical stressors.
  5. horizontal stressors.*
  1. Cumulative stressor events can create a(n) situation.
  2. boundary maintenance
  3. communication collapse
  4. pile-up stressor event*
  5. emotional breakdown
  1. A family’s ability to cope with change depends on family members’ ability to
  2. work together in time of stress. *
  3. take direction from the family leader.
  4. contribute financially to the family’s well-being.
  5. act as independent members.
  1. families value individual autonomy, but they have a sense of family unity and identity.
  2. Disengaged
  3. Separated*
  4. Connected
  5. Enmeshed
  1. families value family closeness above all, and to sacrifice togetherness for independence is seen as a violation of family values.
  2. Disengaged
  3. Separated
  4. Connected
  5. Enmeshed *
  1. families are reluctant to change rules and roles and tend to maintain the status quo at all cost.
  2. Flexible
  3. Structured
  4. Rigid*
  5. Chaotic

True/False Questions (10)

  1. In a family’s social ecology, a macrosystem includes those systems that the individual may never deal with directly but that can influence the individual’s well-being. (False)
  2. The concept of circularity describes how every member within a family system influences every other member in a circular chain reaction. (True)
  3. Identity formation is the process in which the family provides the family members with experiences and information that form and inform their identity. (False)
  4. Generational time refers to how time is experienced in a greater historical period and how this period shapes and influences one’s experience and identity in a larger panoramic and historical context. (False)
  5. In the movement to define a self, an adolescent may test the family boundaries and rules. (True)
  6. In the boomerang stage, the main challenge for the family is avoiding reverting back to former parent-child roles. (True)
  7. The aging family members stage is a period in which the parents may be involved in reviewing and reappraising where they are in terms of their earlier goals, dreams, and life aspirations. (False)
  8. How families manage horizontal stress is reflective of what is described as vertical stressors, which include multigenerational family patterns resulting from family secrets and unresolved issues. (True)
  9. Flexibility refers to a family’s ability to modify its rules, roles, and structure in response to the pressures and conflicts of family life. (True)
  10. One of the characteristics of family health is when subsystem boundaries are rigid and diffuse and are not subject to change. (False)

Short Answer/Fill-in-the-Blank (10)

  1. According to those who maintain that the traditional family is declining, and perhaps already dead, what are the three main causes of this situation? (the increase in single-parent families, the increase in divorce rates, calls for the legalization of gay marriage)
  2. The term describes when nonbiologically related persons are considered as part of a given family system. (fictive kin)
  3. Institutions that specifically assist the family in performing its functions are part of the family’s . (social ecology)
  4. It is possible to classifyon a continuum from open to closed, depending on how permeable or flexible they are. (family boundaries)
  5. are unspoken guidelines that inform and structure family interaction. (Family rules)
  6. attempt to capture the impact of changes on family life by identifying predicable stages and developmental tasks that families experience over time. (Life cycle theories)
  7. According to the stages of the family life cycle (Table 2.3), which stage contains the fewest family tasks? (7., Middle-aged parents)
  8. As couples come together they bring to the relationship two distinct . (narratives)
  9. When the last child leaves home, the couple will have to rework the couple narrative to include living with a(n) . (“empty nest”)
  10. Name the two kinds of stress families encounter. (normative and non-normative)

Essay Questions (5)

  1. Consider the definition of “family” given by the U.S. Census Bureau in 2008. How does this definition fail to represent contemporary family structures?
  2. What are the four central functions of a family? What happens when a family is unable to fulfill these functions?
  3. According to Anderson and Sabatelli, what are the four first-order tasks of maintaining optimal family functioning? Do these tasks change across socioeconomic status or cultural heritage?
  4. Identify the different dimensions of time. How can these different qualities of time help shape one’s experiences?
  5. List the six types of life cycles encompassed by the developmental stage of families with young children. How might the inclusion of these six life cycles further complicate this stage?