In sociology, there are many models of active recovery of family functions. The McMaster Model is a research-developed procedure for studying the functioning of the family. The considered model aims to develop a joint and detailed presentation of the explored family, and also allows social services to summarize and organize the collected information. The given family learning model is based on the ecological systems theory, which includes some underlying assumptions.
That is the connection of elements of the family, the impossibility of understanding one family part separately from another, and the fact that the functioning of the family cannot be based just on understanding. Thus, the organization and structure of the family play an essential role in the development of the behavior of its members (Miller et al., 2000). The main objective of the represented model is to assist social services and psychologists during the process of family therapy or family assessment after several reports.
Even though the model does not reveal the full picture of family relationships, it gives the most accurate possible idea of the functioning of the family institution. Moreover, Turliuc et al. (2016) claim that “the McMaster Systemic Model provides clinicians with a conceptual framework for assessing family functioning and treating families” (p. 11). There are six dimensions in the McMaster Model, each of which helps to determine the effectiveness of the family, and has the same value in the evaluation process. These dimensions are problem-solving, communication, roles, affective responsiveness, affective involvement, and behavior control.
In any case, it will be more efficient to use the model in conjunction with the ecological system theory. As Kilanowski (2017) states in his article, “the initial theory by Bronfenbrenner was illustrated by nesting circles that place the individual in the center surrounded by various systems” (p.2). According to Bronfenbrenner’s Theory of Ecological Systems, the “psychological ecology” of a person is a set of hierarchical subsystems (Kilanowski, 2017).
The closest subsystem is the microsystem of the family, kindergarten, and school. Likewise, there is the mesosystem of social communication and the living environment. Also, there is the exosystem of large social organizations, that does not directly affect the development of the person. And the last one is the macrosystem formed by a combination of socio-economic factors, national customs, and cultural values. The fifth subsystem was added to the four main ones later; it is the chronosystem, which took into account the historical development of the ecology of the first four levels.
The Family Assessment
After considering the theoretical part, the practical assessment of the situation in the Williams family can begin. The Williams family consists of Terri, a mother who has an Italian-Germanic origin, Antonio is the second member of a family, and he has Cuban-American descent. The spouses have three children, all boys, Jose is four years old, Jerrodd is three years old, and DJ is four months old. Their fourth child Tomas died at the age of two months due to sudden infant death syndrome. Mr. Williams and Mrs. Williams have been married for five years, but they have known each other much longer.
Terri had a challenging childhood which affects her ability to solve problems and respond to emotional difficulties correctly. Since the woman has been sexually abused since her youth, she has confidence problems and trust issues, in particular, she cannot freely communicate with her husband, who abuses her regularly. Her husband, Antonio also has problems associated with childhood as he had communicative issues with his father, which caused his aggression towards his wife and children. He has two contrasting characteristics as well, which means that he overly protects his family from external interference, but at the same time, he is an aggressor himself.
Moreover, both adult family members use psychoactive substances and alcohol regularly, which also leads to inadequate perceptions of reality. The death of their child in infancy served as a trigger to exacerbate the problems that spouses received in childhood and the existing problems cause difficulties in all dimensions.
Primarily, the first dimension (problem-solving) should be studied at the micro, meso, and macro levels. Hamilton & Carr (2015) state that “problem-solving is the family’s ability to resolve a problem without causing disruption to family functioning effectively” (p. 18). Unfortunately, the family has apparent difficulties in solving the problems in the closest environment (in the microsystem). Therefore, in the first dimension, represented childhood issues lead to the inability to resolve internal and external problems adequately and without violence. There are instrumental problems in the family, such as a lack of money, differences in parenting attitude, and Terri’s (wife) alcohol addiction.
Apart from that, there are also effective, relationship-related problems, such as Antonio’s (husband) infidelities, communication issues, and verbal abuse. The family also has troubles in the mesosystem, such as Antonio’s unskilled job with low wages, poor reputation among neighbors, problems in relationships with parents, and children’s school failure. Lastly, the family has issues in the macrosystem as well; obviously, the family consisting of a drug and alcohol addict and unemployed has a low social status.
Furthermore, there is the second dimension (communication) that includes data on the exchange of information within the family, in this section, only verbal forms of communication count (Miller et al., 2000). Trust problems and weak, even aggressive perceptions of reality lead to a practical absence of verbal communication in the studied family, and spouses communicate only during fights. It can also be noticed that there are humiliations from the husband, likewise constant shouting in the presence of minors. Moreover, there are also communication issues in the mesosystem since family members cannot build dialogue, which causes problems at school and work. The inability to correctly express one’s thoughts verbally can cause issues in the social sphere (in the macrosystem) as well.
The third dimension is the roles within the family that are aimed at the distribution of responsibilities and the development of specific behaviors that will help family members to fulfill their functions effectively. In this example, it is clear that family roles are violated, and family members do not perform the necessary functions. Since spouses have distorted paternal and maternal roles in their families, they unintentionally provide a violation of the distribution of characters in their marriage.
Father and mother leave their children and do not provide them with the required conditions for existence, as well as Terri and Antonio do not play the role of spouses as the husband produces verbal and physical abuse against the wife very often. Moreover, the family does not perform its role in society, and members break school rules, ignore neighbor relations, and remain inactive status. Unfortunately, there is the same position in the macrosystem, and low-income family in difficult situations with uneducated children has a low social status.
The fourth dimension is emotional intelligence or affective responsiveness, which means a person’s ability to respond correctly to the level of emotional stress and specific life situations. Both spouses have a complicated past in this family, which influenced their current mental health. Terri received sexual abuse from the age of five and after verbal and physical abuse from her husband, which led to alcoholism and extremely vivid emotional reactions. Antonio had problems with his father, which led to his unrestrained aggression, and occasional insults and humiliation to loved ones.
Traumatic childhood history and recent baby’s death trigged them back to those earlier wounds. After all, Terri and Antonio are only able to respond to those more emergency feelings of guilt, shame, fear, anger, and sadness. At the micro level, such conditions have led to constant arguments, disputes, and even fights, and such an atmosphere is not healthy for children. At the mesolevel, this state of affairs led to complicated relations with parents, reproaches, and poor relationships with neighbors and at work, and for children at school. In the end, at the macro level, such emotional instability spoils the social image of the family, and this part of the society remains left out.
The fifth dimension is effective involvement, which includes an interest in the condition of other family members. In the microsystem of this family, members are not interested in each other’s situation, and parents leave their children on the street. Personal mental problems and the presence of destructive feelings of guilt, anxiety, and unconscious aggression lead to a low level of involvement in the emotional state of children and the second spouse. The parents are indifferent to their education and relationships with peers. Terri and Antonio show a lack of interest in each other as well, and the husband ignores the emotional torment of his wife.
She, in turn, does not help her husband overcome difficulties because of her addictions. In the mesosystem, such an attitude expresses in the absence of reliable friends, good work, and the absence of social responsibility. In the macrosystem, a family in which indifference towards each other reigns will also be indifferent to social responsibilities and roles.
The last dimension is behavior control, which means the degree of family restriction of behavior. It is necessary to observe how family members behave in three types of situations: physically dangerous situations, situations that require the fulfillment of psychobiological needs (food, drinks, sleep, and sex), as well as cases in which social interaction is necessary (Miller et al., 2000). Problems with determining behavior in specific situations are also rooted in the childhood of spouses. Constant exposure to violence and adverse reactions to children have led to behavioral and cognitive impairment.
In the Williams family, the last criterion is violated, as the husband puts the wife in dangerous situations every day, and she silently suffers, and the children have no concept of safety. The needs of family members are fulfilled with distortion, the wife uses alcohol and drugs other than basic needs, and children are often hungry and dirty. The social interaction of all family members is ruined, and there is an inability to build healthy relationships and participate in public life. This measurement is considered mainly within the family, that is, only in the microsystem.
Practical Solutions
The McMaster Model also has a practical application, and several measures can be provided to ensure the effective functioning of the family. As Beierlein et al. (2017) state in their article, the represented model “plays an important role in the assessment of the family” (p. 18). Nevertheless, the represented family has its strengths in several dimensions of the model. Firstly, the family has been together for a long time, which shows the presence of necessary communication and affection (the second and the fifth dimension).
Secondly, relatives who have essential resources can help the family (problem-solving criterion). Thirdly, the spouses are challenged to endure the death of the child, which denies their indifference (the fourth dimension). Furthermore, children who are at such a young age are better suited to upbringing and changing conditions (the sixth dimension).
First of all, you need to remove children from the family temporarily. Then a psychological examination of the parents should be carried out, and if their health can be restored, the restoration of their parental functions should begin. It is necessary to set conditions for the family to improve their qualifications and to receive psychological assistance. As Mansfield et al. (2018) claim, the McMaster Model “was designed to assess family members’ satisfaction or distress across the six dimensions” (p. 1). Therefore, temporary financial support can be provided for the family’s comfort. After all, when the arrangements have been taken and conditions improved, parents can receive children for temporary maintenance.
Indeed, an essential part of restoring a useful family model is trust and constructive dialogue. The therapist must understand what problems the family has and how they can be solved during treatment. Of course, also it is essential to ask the children about the situation, they will feel participation and their importance and will be more open and communicative. The main goal of the model is not to preserve the family as an institution but to restore the functioning of people as social units.
However, McMaster’s model is only an analysis tool; the vital part of the hard work is a proper methodology. An essential detail of the work is not only the work of social services and doctors but also the work of spouses and even children. Obviously, without proper desire and effort on the part of the family that is getting help, the external action will be useless.
References
Beierlein, V., Bultmann, J. C., Möller, B., von Klitzing, K., Flechtner, H.-H., Resch, F., & Bergelt, C. (2017). Measuring family functioning in families with parental cancer: reliability and validity of the German adaptation of the family assessment device (FAD). Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 93, 110–117.
Hamilton, E., & Carr, A. (2015). Systematic review of self-report family assessment measures. Family Process, 55(1), 16–30.
Kilanowski, J. F. (2017). Breadth of the socio-ecological model. Journal of Agromedicine, 22, 1-7.
Miller, I. W., Ryan, C. E., Keitner, G. I., Bishop, D. S., & Epsteinb, N. B. (2000). The McMaster approach to families: theory, assessment, treatment, and research. Journal of Family Therapy, 22, 168—189.
Mansfield, A. K., Keitner, G. I., & Sheeran, T. (2018). The brief assessment of family functioning scale (BAFFS): a three-item version of the general functioning scale of the family assessment device. Psychotherapy Research, 28, 1–8.
Turliuc, M. N, Ciudin, M., & Robu V. (2016). Psychometric properties of a short version of the family assessment device. Romanian Journal of Experimental Applied Psychology, 7(3), 10-25.