AAD HATTER 5

 

 

 

THE EVOLVING
FAMILY

What is the ideal family? Most people
still describe the traditional nuclear
family as the healthiest domestic unit.

Kathy Lynn, family consultant and in-
structor of a new course at Douglas
College entitled The Evolving Family,
says it's time we redefined our notions
of family health in our society.

“Somewhere in our heart we still think
the traditional family is the healthiest,
most viable way to live, despite the fact
that we are going through dramatic
changes and new types of family
organization are evolving.”

“It's a myth that the traditional nuclear
family is healthy just because of the
nature of its structure,” says Lynn. “We
must begin to look at the dynamics
within a given family,as opposed to
labelling it “broken” or “whole”.”

The workshop will examine different
family structures and propose guide-
lines for assessing family health, as
well as ways to help families develop

strategies to best deal with their cir-
cumstances. Lynn says the one-day
course will be of interest to social
service professionals and others who
work with or are interested in families.

Lynn says it is especially important for
professionals to look at how families
are coping with their situations, no
matter what the arrangement is, in
order to help them maximize their
strengths and minimize their weak-
nesses.

in particular, we have to consider how
children are being dealt with, says
Lynn. “By labelling children of single
parent families as products of broken
homes we aren't doing them any good
because this lowers their self-esteem.
The real issues are whether they are
coping well with situations such as
multiple care-givers or two homes.
Are they growing up feeling strong and
secure.”

The Evolving Family will be presented
on Thursday, March 26, 9:00 to 3:00 at
Douglas College. For more informa-
tion call the Community Programs and
Services division at 520-5473.