Families can be such a complicated unit. We see different units and organizations all around us in our daily lives. Out of all these units and organizations, the family is, in my mind, is the most important unit. Having said that, it makes sense for us to know and understand the many different family dynamics and theories. Theories are "set(s) of logically related propositions that explain some phenomenon" (Lauer and Lauer, P. 20), and seek to help us predict and explain events. Family theories, of which there are several as mentioned earlier, may help us to understand specific experiences within the family and to alter the course of future events. This is highly beneficial because there are so many things that we observe in our families, some of which are good, while others are less than stellar and should be changed.

              There are a few different theories that we discussed in class – these include the exchange theory, the symbolic interaction theory, conflict theory, and general ecological theory. The first theory, which is the exchange theory, can be explained simply as the “you owe me one” theory. It is based on the idea of cost – such as time, money, emotional, or intellectual energy. In other words, it is what someone considers is their investment in a relationship, and whether or not it is worth it. This can be good or bad, because someone who is in any relationship might look at their relationship and evaluate it. If they see themselves putting in more than the other person is, they might just decide to end the relationship, which might be good if it is a toxic or bad relationship, but is a waste if the person just does not know how to resolve an issue and fix a problem.

              This theory stuck out to me the most because I feel like I behave this way in a lot of situations and relationships. I like to pull in as much information as I can and I feel like I am a very analytical guy who likes to analyze and assess any situation I am in, whether it is crucial or not. I have found this behavior useful at times because I am able to analyze a situation and decide what might be the best course of action, or how to resolve a certain problem I am facing. However, I have noticed that I tend to over analyze situations and be very critical of it, and sometimes even negative. I tend to focus too much on information and on the facts, and fail to realize that relationships are built on so much more than just that. I began to realize that sometimes I do this to my family. I would be over-judgmental or over-critical over some of the smallest mistakes they would make, which would change the way I treated or talked to them. This is definitely something that I want to change and am working hard to do so.

              Other than that, we also talked about how trends can carry on and be passed on from one generation to another in our class. Sometimes we do it knowingly because it is something that we are familiar with, something that we’ve seen our father or mother do, which we feel is the right thing. However, other times, it is just something that we unknowingly do because it is the only thing that we know or have seen before. After what we talked about in class, I started to think about trends that are in my family, that I have seen in my grandparents, in my parents, and in myself, and whether they are good or bad. I feel like this something that we should all do – look at our families, our lives, how we go about taking care of things, and seeing what we need to change and how we can improve. Just because our grandparents or parents did something a certain way, doesn’t mean we have to do the exact same thing, especially if it does not benefit anyone.