Case Study on a military family

Theories of Human Behavior

Text Book: Dimensions of Human Behavior 6^th Edition

The rubric for the final paper can be found on page 3 of the course syllabus and I have copied it below for your convenience:

1. Examine your social system using 3 perspectives/theories and 5 concepts (ideas derived from the theories found in the text chapters) as they apply to the social unit you select.

2. Define and discuss the perspectives/theories and concepts in detail and give examples of how the social system demonstrates each theory and concept. Also discuss diversity issues relevant to the social system (race, ethnicity, social class, religion, physical/mental ability, sexual orientation, etc.).

3. Describe and illustrate ways in which social systems promote or block the achievement and maintenance of health and well-being for the social unit you selected.

This paper should be a maximum of 7 – 10 double-spaced pages in length and follow APA format. Include pertinent material from your textbook and include a minimum of three articles from social work journals that present research findings specifically relevant to understanding the causes of your client’s problems or relevant to how to provide effective social services. The cover and reference page are not included in the page number requirement. Points will be deducted for failure to adhere to the maximum number of pages. Your grade will be determined based on the following rubric.

Rubric

I have added two sections from a paper that mimics the structure of the final paper for this course (“Example Theory and Concept Use.docx” in modules). Note that in the first section “Client Situation” a portrait is painted outlining the case subject. In the paper for this class, the same idea applies for a family, a group, a small organization, or a community. So rather than focusing on a single individual like in the example, you’ll be looking at a group of people (social unit).

After defining and describing your social unit of choice you’ll be using 3 perspectives/theories and 5 concepts from the book and apply them to your social unit. In the example, under the “Human Behavior and Social Environment” section, you see that systems theory is used to better understand the client’s situation. You will also see that the concepts of system boundaries and support networks (concepts within systems theory) are used to further understand the client’s situation. You can take a similar approach to your social unit of choice.

For example, if your social unit of choice is female veterans you might consider how the transition from military culture to civilian culture could affect that group using a mentalist perspective (pg. 234). Within the mentalist perspective there are many concepts that might be useful such as values (pg. 236) and symbols (pg. 236). Acculturation could also be a useful concept in understanding the group. You might also consider how a systems perspective (pg. 38) and its concepts could contribute to a female veteran’s well-being. Conflict perspective (pg. 42) might also have lent itself to useful theories that have been used to advocate for female rights in a male dominated segment of society.

You can use more than 5 concepts if you need to but do try to stick to the use of just 3 perspectives/theories. Make sure to use perspectives/theories comprehensively. I encourage you to look at the attached paper to get an idea of what comprehensive use of theory and concepts look like. Keep in mind that concepts tend to be words in boldface in the textbook. You don’t need to use the same section headings that the example paper used, it’s provided as more of an example of theory and concept use in a case study. If anyone needs further clarification feel free to contact me.