FAMILY of Cultural Diversity ASSESMENT

FAMILY of Cultural Diversity ASSESMENT
The family I interviewed was an extended family. The family constitutes of grandparents, grand aunt, and uncle, uncles, aunts their children father, mother and a daughter. The family is a close knit group. The family owns a business where most of the family earns an income from. Despite having the business some members are employed elsewhere, for instance, one of the uncles is employed as a police officer CITATION Joy02 l 1033 (Joyce Newman Giger, 2002).
Culturally the mother uncles, aunts, grandparents and grand aunt, and uncle are proud Greek-American. The father, however, is American. This shows the accommodative nature of the family and its ability to accept and adapt to changes. Despite the rigidity that the family at first had in accepting another person who is not of their ethnicity, the family accepted the father.
Religiously they are catholic. Despite not making many attempts at actively participating in their faith they still profess the catholic faith. From a review of the family’s habits their faith is only practiced and seen to make much impact during some family functions such as weddings. Though not a religious backing, the family also observes traditional Greek beliefs and practices passed down through generations CITATION Joy02 l 1033 (Joyce Newman Giger, 2002).
There is some semblance of economic stability within this family. All persons are employed and thus have an income to enable them to manage a certain degree of comfort in their lives.

As seen from observation children in the family have to a good extent exemplary good education. The family also encourages financial independence by requiring and requesting that the young children help out at the family business during their free time CITATION Wil00 l 1033 (Nichols, 2000). The family hence falls in the middle class of the socioeconomic stage.
Leisure is a time when there is no work to be done. This family likes to spend this time to reconnect with each other. As such a lot of outdoor activities are undertaken.
Due to the extended nature of the family, there is no one definite stage that the entire family belongs to. With this in mind, the family is broken down into its constituents units. In the case of aunts and uncles, they are within reasonable doubt in the parental years of the family cycle. To further break it down they are in the expanding stage of the cycle CITATION Mar091 l 1033 (Friedman, 2009). This is the stage characterized by the introduction of new members into the family. These new members include infants.
The older generation of this family is in retirement years of the family cycle. This stage is characterized by aging parents who have become elders. They tend to get more time to spend on hobbies and relaxation as well as spend time with the family. It is the last stage of the family developmental cycle.
The mother and the Father are also in the parental years of the family cycle . However, they fall under a different category of that specific cycle. They are experiencing the development category. This is where the parents send out their children to school. Family activities stop being centered on the home and become more of outdoors. They also mainly constitute of school-based functions CITATION Wil00 l 1033 (Nichols, 2000).
The family being interviewed live in comfortable homes. They all have a steady supply of income and thus can afford to some extent luxurious living. Their houses are spacious and allow room for all individuals to experience a state of personal space. The neighborhood that the family resides in is secure, clean and strictly a residential area with only homes. They are well serviced by roads and in close proximity to necessary social amenities such as schools, hospitals, and even shopping malls. The family members are close neighbors. The community at large is fascinated by the family’s relationships, and how tied together they are. Due to the close relations the family shares and act as each other’s support system. They help each other in whatever way that they can and always know when the other is experiencing a problem and are quick to lend a hand and even offer advice CITATION Mar091 l 1033 (Friedman, 2009).
English is the primary language in the family. Though of Greek descent, the family rarely speaks in their native language. This can be attributed to the fact that apart from the old generation, who are immigrants, most of the other members of the family are American born. Communication in the family is good. All members are allowed to voice their opinions. They share their problems, and the other members offer solutions.
The concept of time is not always recognized in this family. Most of the time they are late for occasions, but that does not keep them from achieving their intended objectives. The social organization is based on tradition. This is where the men of the family organize and make decisions while the women are seen as more of managers and caretakers CITATION Wil00 l 1033 (Nichols, 2000).
With such unity within the family, the concept of space is highly violated and in all truth, outright disregard and contempt are placed upon it. The family sees any form of privacy as secrecy and a way of pushing family away from an individual’s life. This attitude towards privacy and giving each other space brings conflict within the family and causes discomfort and even shame among the members because secrets are always out in the open.
The family is quite liberal and agrees with the change. For the most part, the members are Greek apart from the father who is American. This ethnic integration was at first taken with a lot of hesitation and hostility, but in the end, the differences were settled.
In terms of health practices, the family takes up a blend of both traditional and modern practices. In their definition health is the wellbeing of the mind and body. Illness, on the other hand, is any general feeling of malady. Though the diseases are dismissed once they are said the family seems to understand the concept of healthcare CITATION Mar091 l 1033 (Friedman, 2009).
Modern beliefs about childbirth are practiced by the family. Income being a large factor that contributes to the number of children each has. The family does not predispose to any conditions that put to risk the females’ lives. No genetic or hereditary diseases are experienced by the family. The all have clean bills of health. All preventive measures are sought in order to prevent diseases. Healthy eating habits are adopted by the members of the family so as to discourage diseases caused by poor eating habits. The family also ensures that all persons in need of medication have a regular supply of the medicine they need by filling up prescriptions CITATION Mar091 l 1033 (Friedman, 2009).
They all share a rather modern perspective towards medication and thus not a lot of culture influences their perceptions on healthcare. As such they all have insurance either provided by their places of work or even private. Apart from alcohol consumption all other drugs are highly discouraged. They are considered as waste and even if taken for recreation they are still not generally accepted especially in the older generation of the family CITATION Joy02 l 1033 (Joyce Newman Giger, 2002). Family encourages hard work and commitment towards an intended course. With such strict norms, there is not much time left for rest. The family is also so intertwined in each other that leisure is sometimes used to correct family problems instead of relaxing.
To cope with stress, each member acts differently. Some hide within themselves and their work while others tell each other what is stressing them. The biggest hindrance to happiness most of the member have is the lack of personal space and privacy. As such they feel trapped in a world where there are more people than the room to accommodate all of them.
References
BIBLIOGRAPHY l 1033 Friedman, M. M. (2009). Family Nursing. Chicago: Oxford publishers.
Joyce Newman Giger, R. D. (2002). Transcultural Assesment model. New York: Sage Publishers.
Nichols, W. C. (2000). Handbook of Family Development and Intervention. Los Angeles: ISBN Publishers.