A nurse is working with family members who have been striving to ...

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A nurse is working with family members who have been striving to improve their functioning as a family unit. What behavior would suggest to the nurse that the family is meeting its goals?
 
  A.
  The children are in multiple activities to develop talents.
  B.
  The desire to be understood guides most communication.
  C.
  Family members gave up some activities in order to eat dinner together on most nights.
  D.
  The parents have a strong desire for the children to succeed.

Question 2

The nurse observes a woman and her sister who live together. They are trying to support one another and provide extended care to their mother who has recently been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease.
 
  The two sisters describe their experience with a homemaker who visits their home to help bathe their mother. They say she is humorous and cheerful and absorbs their mother's attention for the whole time she is present. This is a positive description of which component of Bowen's family systems theory?
  A.
  Communication
  B.
  Family relationship building
  C.
  Family rituals
  D.
  Triangulation

[bassamabas]

Answer to Question 1

ANS: C
Effective tools for families include ways to enhance family performance. One very effective tool is to put the family first in this very chaotic world. Giving up some activities in order to eat dinner together shows the family is putting the unit as a whole first over individual desires. This is the opposite of children being in multiple activities, which often cuts into family time and can be disruptive. Communication should be guided by the desire to understand the other first, then to be understood. A strong desire for the children's success does not guarantee successful family functioning.

Answer to Question 2

ANS: D
According to Bowen, triangulation occurs when a dyad (the sisters) focuses on a third person who draws attention away from their conflicts. The homemaker is serving this function in this family. Bowen's theory looks at family problems that are rooted in family processes, such as communication. Relationship building and rituals are not part of this theory.