Summary
Chapter six of the book Handbook of Diversity in Parent Education: The Changing Faces of Parenting and Parent Education, titled ‘A Psychoeducational Program for Parents of Dysfunctional Backgrounds’ presents how the dysfunctional behavior in families can be reduced and managed by increased making the parents aware of their behavior through psychological therapy as well as education-based programs.
It takes into account the literature available on the application of psychotherapy and psycho-education in terms of educating people about their past and how it influences their actions in the future in the adult roles and as parents in a household. The chapter states that the parents in their adult roles tend to convert their experiences as a child as well as the frustrations as children into the adult roles as [parents fuelling aggression and violence in their families.
Strengths
The strength of the article that has been identified is that the Fine author bases the concept of psycho-education as a treatment for reducing violent and discrepant behavior in families on empirical researches and their findings. This lends credibility as well as strength to the recommendations presented by the author as it is clearly depicted that the recommendations made have been determined after careful observation, research, and analysis of theoretical literature and concepts as well as practical results gathered through empirical studies.
Weaknesses
The weakness of the concept of Psycho-educational Program for Parents of Dysfunctional Backgrounds, as depicted by Fine in his book, is that the proposed solution of psycho-education can aid in reducing the violence in families and its effect on the upbringing of children of dysfunctional households to a certain extent only. Other elements like the nature of the parents and the children, as well as the influence of the peers and the surrounding environment, also have to be taken into account.
Degree of Generalization
The concept presented by Fine to make reduce violent behavior in dysfunctional families through psycho-education can be generalized to those segments of the population that are open to psychological treatment and therapies. In communities and regions where there is no concept of family counseling, the concept and practice of psycho-education cannot work, as depicted in the book by Fine.