Family of Origin
Assignment Instructions: Ecomap Assignment on Your Family of Origin
The Family of Origin Ecomap assignment consists of three parts, the ecomap, the paper, and your reflection of this exercise.
Combined this assignment is worth 300 points.
The ecomap paper will showcase your knowledge and understanding of ecological and family systems theories, as well as your ability to apply the ecomapping skill described in your course materials. The 8-10 page paper should use 7th edition APA-style format, and be double-spaced (with 1-inch margins) with a title page and reference page. (Note: The title/reference pages are not included in the page count).
Ecomap Drawing (25 points): First, you will use your own family as the focus of an ecomap and explicitly demonstrate the multiple points of connection between your family and larger social systems. (You will define the term “family” for yourself; however, you could also use a hypothetical family or peer/neighbor family unit with which you are familiar as long as you know a lot of details about the family.) In order to complete this portion of the assignment, you must create an ecomap that addresses, at minimum, the following five (5) family-systems interactions: extended family, work, school, local social service agencies, and government. You may include information on other relevant systems such as the health care system, religious organizations, hobby/recreational groups, etc. The ecomap may be drawn by hand and scanned as a pdf or jpeg or created using MS Office software. (Do not buy any program to help you make your ecomap)
TIPS
Please make sure you include a key/legend of how each of the systems are connected.
A hand-written ecomap will be accepted and student who have completed handwritten ecomaps have received full credit in the past. If you spend 2 minutes drawing some lines and circles on a piece of paper I will know and your grade for the ecomap will be reflective of the effort you put into the work.
Use the writing center on campus. We are fortunate to have great supportive services on campus. Please use them.
Ecomap Paper (225 points): Second, you will describe the connections between your own family and larger social systems illustrated in your ecomap within a paper:
The first section of your paper will provide an introductory description of your family unit (however you are defining it). This should include information you deem relevant to provide me with an understanding of your family unit and its internal dynamics (e.g., marriages, divorces, ages, births, roles, responsibilities, etc.) (This section should be 2-3 pages.)
The second section should contain detailed information describing each of the 5 mandatory (and other) social systems you referred to in your ecomap. You should have at least 1 detailed paragraph for each family-system dynamic. You should use subheadings to delineate between family-system interactions. (This section should be 2-3 pages.)
The third section should contain a theoretical analysis of your family unit from at least two different theoretical perspectives covered in this class. The two perspectives should need to be outlined and a breakdown of the theory should be applied to your family unit. Be sure to include metaphors that have been discussed and finally how the perspectives your chosen highlight the strengths and weaknesses of your family unit. (This section should be 4-5 pages)
The final section should contain a feasible and appropriate intervention and resources specifically addressing one (1) problematic family-system interaction that you identified in the previous section(s). For example, it is insufficient to state “Person X should receive a referral for therapy related to her binge drinking.” A well-crafted intervention plan should describe each of the following:
A connection between the theory underlying the family-system dynamic being addressed and the intervention.
the type of therapy or intervention,
goals for therapy or the intervention,
information about the therapeutic process/intervention and relationship, and
other relevant details and resources.
The intervention and resources plan should be taken and paraphrased from reputable sources such as peer-reviewed literature (research articles from peer-reviewed journals can be found in PsycINFO, PubMed, EBSCO, etc.), state and federal websites, and so on. Wikipedia is NOT a credible source! You should also not use newspapers, popular press journals, and other secondary sources.. (This section should be 2-3 pages)
You should have a total of at least 6 APA cited journal entries throughout your paper. (Wikipedia is not peer-reviewed literature).
Please note that you can submit the assignment multiple times up until the due date/time. Each time you submit the assignment, Turnitin.com will provide you with an originality report that you may use to check for grammar/syntax, spelling, and potential paraphrasing or plagiarism issues. Late papers may be assessed a 25-point per day penalty. I will not accept papers after the last official class day of the semester for any reason.
Papers showing evidence of poor paraphrasing will earn an automatic 100-point penalty (i.e., one or more instances involving verbatim phrases without quotation marks, and/or maintaining similar sentence structure from the source material with only a few words changed); those showing evidence of plagiarism will earn an automatic grade of “0” or “F” (i.e., whole sentences or paragraphs taken verbatim from source material, and/or failure to use quotation marks and in-text citations) and I will have to file a plagiarism form with the University. To assist with avoiding these issues, students are welcome to make in-person (or Zoom appointments) with me to discuss elements of their papers and/or effective writing techniques.
*** Use the writing center on campus. We are fortunate to have great supportive services on campus. Please use them.
Reflection (50 points). Finally, you will complete a reflection about your experience in this class, specifically the final project. Please include answers to the following prompts and feel free to share any additional information as well
How difficult did you find the assignment to be? Looking at your own family?
What did you learn about yourself and your family?
Will having this information make you a better social worker/person? Why?
Your reflection should be at least 1 page in length
Paper Format: APA
Answer preview to Family of Origin
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