News Updates

Resiliency in Families: Ability to Overcome Challenges Addressed by Family Program
By Rick Krueger, MA, LADC

Family Program participants enjoy recreation activities such as pontoon ridesJuly 30, 2010 - Resiliency is a family’s ability to cope with stress and not only survive, but thrive. All families experience stress. Stress can occur naturally through life events such as the birth of a child, aging or leaving home. Unexpected stress can occur with the death of a loved one, serious illness or loss of a job. Families can positively respond to stress through a variety of ways such as humor, physical activity and traditions.

The study of resiliency focuses on why things go right, even though the odds say they should go wrong. Initially, resiliency research focused on the individual’s level of resilience when confronted by challenging or threatening events. The study has expanded to include the resiliency of families and communities.

Resiliency theory explores the interplay of risk, vulnerability and protective factors. These factors have been defined as:

  • Risk factors increase the chance of an undesirable outcome affecting a person.
  • Vulnerability renders a person more susceptible to a threat.
  • Protective factors moderate the effects of risk.

A family-resilience approach builds on these developments to strengthen a family’s capacity to master adversity. Three types of approaches have been identified in relation to the promotion of resilience:

  • Risk-focused methods with the aim to reduce or prevent risks.
  • Asset-focused methods that improve adaptive functioning to counteract adversity.
  • Process-focused approaches aim to protect, activate or restore fundamental adaptation systems to support positive development.

Vinland’s family program uses all three of these approaches to allow families to strengthen their resiliency across their physical, intellectual, social, emotional and spiritual areas of family functioning. Vinland’s family program consists of three parts:

  • Monthly family renewal events focus on building traditions and family rituals and finding leisure activities that can be continued in the community after treatment.
  • Bi-weekly family lecture series provides information on building communication skills, an understanding of family systems, and information on brain injuries, chemical dependency and mental health issues and the interaction of these co-occurring disorders.
  • Weekly parenting program covers the importance of lowering risks and increasing protective factors in children. Participants learn the importance of reducing stress and self-care for the child-care provider.

References:

“What works in building resilience?”, T Newman, 2004. Barnardos Policy & Research Unit.

Yates, T. M., & Masten, A. S. (2004). Fostering the future: Resilience theory and the practice of positive psychology. In P. A. Linley & S. Joseph (Eds.), Positive psychology in practice (pp. 521-539). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley

Walsh, F. (1996). The concept of family resilience: Crisis and challenge. Family Process, 35, 261-281.

Walsh, F. (1998a). Families in later life: Challenge and opportunities. In B. Carter & M. McGoldrick (Eds.)

The expanded life cycle (pp. 307-326). Needham Heights, MA: Allyn & Bacon.

Kuyken, W., Padesky, C.A. & Dudley, R. (2009). Collaborative Case Conceptualization: Working Effectively with Clients in Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy. New York: Guilford.

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