Family Disintegration: What It Is And What Effects It Has
Family disintegration is a phenomenon that has been especially studied since the 1980s; moment in which an important transformation of the social organization of the family occurs.
It is a complex process that is usually analyzed from the negative psychological effects it can have on children. However, it is also a phenomenon that provides a lot of information about the values that organize our societies and about the changes that have occurred in them.
Following the above We will see what family disintegration is what are some of its psychological effects and how the organization of families has been transformed in recent decades.
The family, understood as the social unit intermediate between the individual and the community (Ortiz, Louro, Jiménez, et al, 1999) is one of the protagonists in our cultural organization. Its function has traditionally been understood in terms of satisfying economic, educational, filial and cultural needs; through which values, beliefs, knowledge, criteria, roles are created etc.
The above occurs through an interactive and systematic relational dynamic between the members of a family (Herrera, 1997), that is, between people who share some form of kinship. In this sense, the process through which the previously established organization of a related group of people is significantly modified
But does every modification in the organization of the family imply disintegration? We could quickly respond in the negative: not every rearrangement in the organization of a family implies its separation. For family disintegration to occur, the kinship or relational dynamics that unite its members must be qualitatively modified. The latter is often presented as caused by the absence of one of the parents or caregivers ; which among other things means that the traditional family model has been considered as the unit of analysis.
Family modification or separation is not necessarily negative; That is, in many cases it is an agreement or a situation that ensures the physical or psychological well-being of the members.
In other words, the rearrangement or disruption of a previously established family organization It can be the solution to conflictive situations caused within the family, and as such, can have positive effects on its members. Depending on the family dynamic, it may happen that its disintegration has more positive effects than its maintenance.
However, the concept of “family disintegration” usually refers specifically to the conflictive process of separation or modification, which as such, generates negative effects for one or all of the parties involved.
Diversity in family models
As a form of organization and social group, the organization and particular dynamics of the family responds to a series of norms and values that are characteristic of a society and a specific historical moment.
Traditionally, any family member who did not follow the traditional model was considered dysfunctional or disintegrated. Currently, the above coexists with the recognition of single-parent families and families that are structured based on the diversity of sexual identities (Bárcenas-Barajas, 2010), which among other things allows the social organization of the family to be rearranged at a structural level. .
Studies on its psychological effects
The negative effects of family disintegration on children have been especially studied. Broadly speaking, research has revealed that family disintegration makes it difficult to satisfy the needs that a family is expected to meet
In the medium and long term, and at a psychological level, these studies have proposed, for example, that family disintegration has the effect of low self-esteem, feelings and behaviors of helplessness, as well as difficulties in establishing sexual-affective bonds (Portillo and Torres, 2007 ; Herrera, 1997). Similarly, social behavior and its relationship with family disintegration have been investigated, for example, in increased violent behavior or excessive withdrawal
In the short term and especially in early childhood, it has been seen that family disintegration (when presented as an unforeseen event and a significant change in the daily structure) can cause confusion, anguish, guilt, rage, or self-destructive behaviors
In any case, it is important to take into account that, although studies have found relationships between variables (for example, between a low self-esteem score and an experience of family disintegration in childhood), this does not necessarily imply causality: low self-esteem It can be caused by many other variables.
In fact, recent studies contradict traditional hypotheses and suggest that Not in all cases the relationship between family disintegration and low self-esteem is proven (Portillo and Torres, 2007). The latter leads us to consider that not all people react in the same way, just as not all families and not all adults manage a disintegration process in the same way or with the same resources.
4 causes
The causes that have been studied and traditionally established as determining factors in family disintegration are the following:
1. Abandonment
We understand by “abandonment” helplessness, neglect, resignation or estrangement This is a situation that has been proposed as one of the main causes of family disintegration. In turn, this neglect, resignation or distancing can be caused by different causes.
For example, the absence of care or of one of the primary caregivers is in many cases a consequence of socioeconomic conditions that do not allow domestic and provision demands to be met at the same time. In other cases it may be due to the inequitable distribution or rearrangement of care or provision responsibilities within the family.
In this context, a divorce is the legal dissolution of a marriage. As such, it implies significant changes in the family dynamics that support a couple, with and without children Divorce can have many causes. For example, breach of the marital fidelity contract, domestic and intrafamily violence, frequent disagreements between the people involved, among others.
3. Death
The death of one of the family members It is another of the main causes of family disintegration. In this case, the death of one of the parents or caregivers does not necessarily cause the rearrangement of the family organization. Especially if it is one of the children, a very important process of disintegration can be experienced.
4. Migration
On many occasions, the separation or disintegration of a family is a consequence of migratory processes that lead one or both caregivers to move from the city of settlement to another where they can aspire to improve their quality of life. In addition the deportation processes that are taking place in many industrialized societies have generated the same effect.
