Question

In your own words and (between 500-750 words) answer the following two questions in essay writing format:

1.How our understanding of individual, family, and community protective factors about (Emmy Werner's initial finding) associated with increased resilience for at‐risk individuals and populations?

2.What key issues are important to consider when conducting research in the area of human resilience?

***NO PLAGIARISM or COPY AND PASTE FROM ANY RESOURCES PLEASE***

Answer 1

Resilience, as explained by Werner and Smith, is described as a person having a good track record of positive adaptation in the face of stress or disruptive change.

Protective factors are conditions or attributes of individuals, families, communities, or the larger society that, when present, promote well-being and reduce the risk for negative outcomes.

At-risk populations refer to those that grow up under vulnerable conditions which expose them to risky and traumatic situations and negative/unfavourable outcomes.

Individual protective factors associated with increased resilience in at-risk individuals and populations:

IQ

Individuals with high IQs may possess better information-processing and problem-solving skills, thereby enabling them to better encounter stresses and challenges. They also perform better at academics which in turn helps them adopt social norms and integrate them into everyday living.

Emotion Regulation

Emotion regulation includes the processes that monitor, evaluate, and/or modify the intensity and duration of emotional reactions to accomplish one's goals and is considered an important component of successful adaptation. Individuals who are adept at managing their emotions may be better able to proactively cope with stressors, and thereby modulate negativity and emotional expression.

Other individual protective factors include: a positive self-image, self-efficacy, self-regulation, a sense of optimism and involvement in positive activities.

Family protective factors associated with increased resilience in at-risk individuals and populations:

Parenting Strategies

Practices such as warmth, consistent discipline, responsiveness, structure, and monitoring by parents ensure positive social adjustment right from childhood. Nurturant, responsive parenting results in lower levels of externalizing and internalizing behaviour and higher levels of peer social competence. Overall, having a good relationship with a parent prepares the growing individual to engage in healthy productive relationships and lesser conflictual relationships with other people in the social environment.

Marital Quality

A successful marriage may have a positive impact on the growing individual due to the parents serving as role-models who provide healthy psychosocial resources required to cope with daily stressors, and enhance emotional security.

Community protective factors associated with increased resilience in at-risk individuals and populations:

A ‘positive school environment’ consists of supportive and empathetic teachers and staff as well as specialized and individualized educational programmes geared towards improving academic as well as personal outcomes. This, along with realistic expectations and meaningful participation, may ensure reductions in symptoms related to depression, psychosocial dysfunction and violence. Another factor includes the provision of a ‘positive community environment’, that is defined by neighbourhood quality and advantage, community safety, social cohesion, and social network support. ‘Economic opportunities’, as defined by higher socioeconomic status, employment, and financial support for higher education, are vital. A ‘stable living situation’ is also equally important, so that the individual may be able to capitalize on the available opportunities.

Key issues to be considered while conducting research around human resilience:

Research on specific factors and populations serve as important building blocks, but it is neither practical nor realistic to study every risk and protective factor in relation to every difficult or traumatic experience with every population, therefore precaution needs to be taken while conceptualizing and measuring resilience, so that it’s essence may not be lost. Further, resilience may be much more than the flip-side of risk factors. The generalizability of the research results, therefore, is limited.

Nature and nurture need to be given equal importance, which may thereby contribute to a more holistic examination of resilience.

The use of mixed methods design can reconcile the methodological challenges when selecting either qualitative or quantitative research methods, thereby paving way for the off-setting of the limitations of each method.

Taking into consideration the strong influence of culture in the study of resilience is also vital.