Question

How are relational and participatory practices thought to contribute to family self-efficacy?

Answer 1

Families are the first and foremost influence on individual development. Policies, programs shape the family and thus the individual. They help to strengthen and undermine family functioning. The processes that maintain family together are boundaries, power and transactional patterns. Internally, they protect the psychology of family members and externally they help the family members to adapt to the changes of the environment such as in the cultural, economic and social contexts. The more the environmental changes the more the family gets affected.

When families breakdown physically, emotionally and economically there are many support systems which comes to their help. To build a family’s self-efficacy, there are many policies and programs that need to be incorporated. These relational practices treat families with dignity and respect, and the participatory practices provide choices and decision making help to the family. Relational practices involve active listening, compassion, empathy, respect that provides positive beliefs about the strengths of the family. Whereas the participatory practices are the individual and flexible responses to the family needs that allow choices and involvement in decision making about family well-being.

Both relational and participatory practices were associated with positive and less negative perceptions of the members of the family. The relational practices focused on the positive aspects of the family and the participatory practices involved the whole family members in goal setting and decision making which made the family work independently and develop self-efficacy.