A professional assigned to work with children and families should treat their role with empathy, patience, and understanding. It is essential to meet families where they are on a non-judgmental basis and provide tailored support in the form of resources that will match their specific needs. Three essential things to remember are valuing diversity, honoring confidentiality, and fostering trust through active listening and validation. It is essential not to have assumptions, bias, or a decisive stance. One of the essential aspects of this practice is viewing each child and family as unique, with their strengths and challenges. You are responsive to them by adapting your approach accordingly. I support the claim that being professional is a never-ending process. No matter how experienced you are, there will always be new opportunities for you to upgrade your skills, update your knowledge, and refine strategies to meet or exceed your children’s and families’ needs. It is essential to remain updated on the latest research and practice, seek to learn and find opportunities for additional education, evaluate and learn from your experience, and be open to ideas and suggestions from colleagues, families, children, and caregivers. The area constantly changes, and professionals must be engaged in lifelong learning and development.
Issues of gender and sexuality are critical for child professionals and those working in child and family services. Two crucial ideas are gender identity and sexual orientation. Gender identity means how a person defines himself or herself (Suen et al., 2020). The fact that gender identity exists on a scale and is not connected to biological sex is worth being focused on. Sexual orientation contextualizes a person’s romantic or sexual gender preference. Heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, and pansexual are some of the common sexual orientations in consideration of which others, like asexual and so on, can also play a part. Professionals must grasp the distinction between gender identity and sexual orientation, use language that is non-discriminatory and positive, and create an environment where children and families talk about gender topics without fearing any discrimination. Although it is not good to make assumptions about the identity of a child or the family orientation, it is, however, always necessary to do so. A professional must ensure that developmentally appropriate information is given and provide each child with the means to understand and express their gender and sexual orientation.
The experts who navigate children’s conversations about sexuality and family life need to provide information and support in a language that affirms the natural human sexuality scope in a context, age-appropriate, and correct way. In this regard, professionals must cover aspects of healthy personal relationships in romantic partnerships, emphasizing mutual respect, consent, open communication, boundaries, and partner equality (Horan et al., 2021). Young people should be empowered and taught how to set their own bodily and private boundaries and how others should respect them. When they express no interest in showing affection, others should also respect that. The reaction to kids’ questions in terms of reproductive organs and biological processes should always be truthful, and the correct terms should be used. Parents’ primary function is to stamp their family’s values in terms of sex and relationships. Professionals can help parents develop a strategy to share their beliefs and make it possible for children to be open and honest. Children and their parents should have information and support material on the targets of sexual and reproductive health and developing sexuality at every stage of development. An open and non-judgmental approach characterized by a free-flowing, explanatory, and informative dialogue facilitates a better understanding of sexuality in human development.
Two key points from the chapter revolve around why singles opt to cohabit instead of marrying and the contrast in stability between cohabiting and marital relationships. Understanding the reasons or motives behind these choices and patterns ensures that professionals seek to understand them out of respect for the diversity of family structures. I will highlight the importance of not being biased and treating unmarried couples equally (Berger & Carlson, 2020). Some of the significant changes, for instance, easing attitudes, online dating, marriage postponement, and high divorce rates, have enlarged the options for individuals to have relationships. People make decisions based on personal needs in an environment with less pressure. It means that the professionals must adapt their strategy and be ready to care for the families at different stages. Two notable aspects are the strain caused by the conflict between work and family commitments and which workplace approaches may help accommodate and support the employees in their juggling act. Facing these issues will allow practitioners to see changes in needs like childcare, parental leave, or working schedules. Accommodations can lighten a mother’s load by creating the conditions to be both a successful parent and a career person.
Labor devotion and parental attention reflect expectations, so the parents’ social standards might conflict with the employees’. The pressure on professionals should be recognized, and they should find answers for families, such as flexible hours, onsite childcare, telecommunication, or adjustments to the workload. Compromises can sometimes be required in the case of competing claims. A child is raised differently depending on the parenting styles, which impact the child’s development. The approach should also be adjusted based on each child’s temperament. Specialists should give parents tips on responding to behavior, being consistent, and praising the least motivated actions. The key components are endurance and managing expectations when parenting a “difficult” child. The socialization process depends on parents’ culture, class, gender norms, and sexual orientation. Professionals should acknowledge the existence of various approaches. They must accept these differences and treat them as valid. Assimilation should not be a coercive measure, but the integration of children into their families and communities should be encouraged.
References
Berger, L. M., & Carlson, M. J. (2020). Family policy and complex contemporary families: A decade in review and implications for the next decade of research and policy practice. Journal of Marriage and Family, 82(1), 478–507. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/jomf.12650
Horan, S. M., Chory, R. M., Craw, E. S., & Jones, H. E. (2021). Blended Work/Life Relationships: Organizational Communication Involving Workplace Peers, Friends, and Lovers. Communication research trends, 40(2). https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Rebecca-Chory/publication/352743829_Blended_WorkLife_Relationships_Organizational_Communication_Involving_Workplace_Peers_Friends_and_Lovers/links/60d5fe55458515d6fbda8459/Blended-Work-Life-Relationships-Organizational-Communication-Involving-Workplace-Peers-Friends-and-Lovers.pdf
Lavrič, M., & Naterer, A. (2020). The power of authoritative parenting: A cross-national study of effects of exposure to different parenting styles on life satisfaction. Children and Youth Services Review, 116, 105274. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S019074092030918X
Suen, L. W., Lunn, M. R., Katuzny, K., Finn, S., Duncan, L., Sevelius, J., & Obedin-Maliver, J. (2020). What sexual and gender minority people want researchers to know about sexual orientation and gender identity questions: a qualitative study. Archives of Sexual Behavior, pp. 49, 2301–2318. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10508-020-01810-y
write