Essay Sample on the Systems Perspective and Conflict Perspective

Introduction

The systems perspective vies human behavior as a result of the interactions among and within the systems of interrelated parts. Essentially, human behavior is a subset or a reflection of different parts that interrelate to define the person. For example, in the case study given at the beginning of the chapter Marcia, Bethany McKinley, Stanley, and Ruth lived interrelated lives. The relationship that they have then influences each person's behavior. The most notable aspect of the relationship is roles that care recipient and caregiver have towards each other. Evidently, the family members kept changing or adjusting their behaviors to accommodate the needs that arise based on the circumstances and time. The family has a behavioral boundary that permits sufficient inputs from extended families, friends, religious organizations, and the extended family (Hutchison, 2016). Moreover, the mentioned system is merely a subset of the larger system that dictates larger systems that go beyond the family, as it ventures into the insecurities associated with employment and the labor market and the gaps that exist within the entire health care systems (national or global). For example, the entire family grapples with the medical cover for Ruth as they provide care to meet her necessities or the essentials.

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In the 1960s, social workers mostly subscribed to the general systems theory, which described systems as the sets of different elements standing in interrelation. The best way to understand each element is by observing how it relates to the other elements. For instance, understanding the McKinley requires a keen observation of the interactions that the family has with the social systems such as the workplace systems, health care systems, and the educational systems. The systems perspective has two substances that include the open and the closed systems. A closed system does not interact with the other systems, meaning it is isolated. On the other hand, the open system is in constant interaction with the other systems. Geographically and socially isolated communities and families are part of the closed system. For any system to be functional (open or closed systems) there needs to be a feedback mechanism that produces homeostasis or stability and the needed change across the systems.

In the 1980s, the ecological theory (or the ecosystems theory) drew a lot of popularity. The theory drew its credibility or origin from ecology, which delves into the relationship between the interaction and the relationship between the environment and the living organisms. The interdependence gives rise to a symbiotic or mutual relationship that forms the foundation of the system. It is worth noting that the environment has a profound influence on the family, a particular group of people, or an individual, and such may exert external influence of other systems. In essence, the ecological perspective was an extension of the general system theory since it considered the significance of the physical environment in shaping the social environment. The most common aspect of the ecological theory in social work is the risk and resilience theory, which borrows heavily on the concepts of public health and the epidemiology to expound on the intricacies of different influences in shaping or defining the human behavior. The theory takes into consideration the risk factors and the influence the interactions have on the environment. Additionally, it includes the protective factors responsible for the creation or the support of the positive outcome.

The complex system theory posits that individuals, people, or other organisms are all a part of part of the numerous systems that form part of various dense interconnections. The sophisticated interactions between the people and the environment produce the unpredictability and uncertainty. The components of the system include the environment, the people, and the organisms. On the other hand, the chaos theory states that the interaction so the various components of a system may appear to cause disorder or chaos, but the underlying truth is that the interaction causes order that is mainly compressible using a complex algorithm. For example, in the McKinley case the there were a lot of disagreements and chaos on the face value, but the interaction created a functional system that led to great levels of care accorded to Ruth. It is worth note that despite the proper functionality of the system, the chaos theory recognizes the value or the occurrence of the negative feedback, which is important in ensuring that the people or the components take the corrective measures to promote stability within the system. Notably, the chaos theory is a useful tool in clinical psychology or social workers, as it is imperative in devising new solutions to certain or persistent problems. In addition, it enables the workers to redefine themselves and adopt the right behavior in times of transition. In the provided case study, a lot changed during the care provision towards Ruth. Application of the chaos theory accords the caregivers the opportunity to adapt to the ensuing changes. The discussed theories (Chaos and complex system) emphasize the need for openness within any system for better performance or results.

Evaluating the systems perspective in the social work requires five main criteria. In terms of coherence and conceptual clarity, the theory comes out as a being a bit ambiguous or vague. In generality, the concepts found therein are a bit abstract and may not have much practical application. In terms of testability and empirical support, the system is poorly defined and the abstract nature of the concept found therein makes it quite difficult, almost impossible to translate the concepts into measurable variables for any meaningful research work. Additionally, in terms of comprehensiveness it rates quite well since it has the ability and the propensity of incorporating different dimensions of human systems and combines the same with various dimensions of the human, non-human systems, and environmental systems. The recent versions of the theory include the power and diversity dimensions. The current or the recent versions of the systems perspective includes dynamic change, has great attention to complexity, and it is open to many probabilities for diversity. The theory is unique in that it discusses or includes the influence of power in defining human behavior. The conventional or traditional theories assumed that the social concensus assumed the idea of power differentials in defining social constructs. Social systems are not only because of shared values or because of social consensus, but also depend heavily on the power dynamics. Finally, the systems perspective is quite useful in directing social work interventions. For example, noting the influence of all the systems perspective would be helpful in the provision of care for Ruth and understanding the influence that the environment. Such would necessary in the functionality of the system put in place to provide care for her, minimize any limitations within the system, and ensure proper relationship between the social workers (caregivers), the family, and the environment. Systems perspective recognizes the value or the occurrence of the negative feedback, which is important in ensuring that the people or the components take the corrective measures to promote stability within the system.

Conflict Perspective

The conflict perspective delves into the cause of conflicts, particularly the ones that arise due to economic inequality or the uneven distribution of resources. Typically, the perspective views the source of conflict or the conflict instigated by political or economic reasons. Recently, the perspective also includes the conflicts that arise due to cultural reasons. The original developers of the perspective (Max Weber or Frederich Engels) mainly focused economic structures, mainly the capitalist economic systems that divided the people into the investors (capitalists) and the workers. The capitalist usually determine what is to be done and the ways to do it since they own the factors and the means of production. According to Max, the mentioned system produces a false conscience since neither the worker nor the capitalist notice the inherent biases that the system portends. Nevertheless, the workers can recognize the biases and exploitation. The capitalists are not able to recognize the biases exploitation embedded in the system. On the other hand, Weber shunned the singular emphasis on the exploitation, and developed multi-dimensional perspective. His assertion then included prestige and power. He delved into the roles the two parameters play in defining human behavior, meaning that his theory transcended economics. On the other hand, Jorgen Habermans and other critical thinkers argued that as capitalism underwent change, the people mostly subscribed to culture and not economics. The work position that one occupied at work would then have little or no bearing on people's behavior.

Immanuel Wallenstein mainly focused on the international inequality. His proposal was that the capitalist world mainly consisted of a system divided into three geographical areas that wielded different powers. The core represented the countries with the means of production that controlled the world economy and had great influence of power. Such countries have the means of exploiting the natural resources (Fitzsimons, 2017). They also have advanced systems of labor. The periphery includes the countries or the nations that provided the cheap raw materials and are exploited by the core. Finally, the semi-periphery nations refer to the newly industrialized that benefit from the periphery but still undergo exploitation from the core. The legal scholars then developed the critical race theory looks at the human relations or behavior based on race. They looked into how race defines everyday relati...