Syllabus

Instructor:

Doreen Arcus, Ph.D.

Class time

Mon 6:00-8:40

Office:

MA 107

Classroom

MA 108

Phone:

978-934-4172

Office Hours:

M WF 12:00-12:50

Description

From the University Catalogue: 47.504 The Family System (3-0)3 Studies family processes and the interplay between the family and other social, cultural, and socio-economic systems. Topics include parental roles, changing family structures, racial and ethnic factors, and interactions between family, work, and community.

This course is designed to provide students with a framework for studying, assessing, or intervening with the complex and dynamic systems in which families exist, function, and grow. Grounding in complex systems theory, which is broadly applicable to many areas of social and natural science, will form the basis for our work. Methods of study and assessment will be introduced. We will explore theoretical frameworks from developmental and clinical perspectives, and further explore the current literature on social, cultural, and historical factors.

Learning Objectives

Students in this class should be able to articulate the relevant issues and evidence in answering the following:

What is a family?
How can we study the dynamics of interpersonal relationships in families over time and across generations?
How do families differ from each other by ethnicity?
What do genograms tell us?
How do families cope with crisis and stress?
How do families evolve through divorce, remarriage, and adoption?
What are special considerations facing single parents and their children or gay or lesbian parents and their children?
What does the historical portrayal of families in the media reveal?
How can psychology inform family policy?

Requirements

Graduate students and undergraduate seniors with GPA > 3.5 may enroll in this course. Any other students need permission of the instructor.

You will be required to read, participate, present, and write for this course. We will not have exams per se. There will be four presentations with a written paper summarizing the presentation, and perhaps expanding on it or otherwise sharpening it, will be due the following week. This arrangement permits students to share ideas and information with each other that may be incorporated into their written work.

Because we all have families, at some level, we are all tempted to think of ourselves as “experts.” This class will require you to use your own experience as a starting point and challenge you to go beyond it. It is likely that personal experiences will be shared in class; you are required to treat all such discussions confidentially. One class project, a genogram, involves detailed discussions of family members, histories, and relationships. If you would rather not share this information in class or with your instructor, please request an alternative family. The alternative assignment will require some additional reading on your part to understand the family well enough to capture their relations in a genogram of your design and interpretation. Details for each of the assignments are found on our website. Please check it weekly as you are responsible for material posted: http://faculty.uml.edu/darcus

Texts

One text has been ordered for this class. This text is the 3^rd edition and differs significantly from previous editions.

Walsh, F. (2003). Normal Family Processes: Growing Diversity and Complexity. NY: Guilford

Additional readings will either be distributed in class or placed on reserve at O’Leary Library. If you do not have a copy of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (5^th edition), you may want to invest in one. All papers must conform to APA conventions.

Grading

Grades will be based on active participation and collaboration in class (20%), four oral presentations (30%) and four written project submissions (50%). Bear in mind that the Graduate School does not permit any grade below a C other than an F (there are no CD or D grades permitted).