Case Study

A. Personal Data Summary

Name: Mico Dora

Age: 5

Grade: Kinder

School: Caloocan North Elementary School

Name of Father: Francisco Dora

Occupation: Foreman

Name of Mother: Anecita Patiga

Occupation: Housewife

B. Joining Process 

                    Mico's family live near our house. They are our neighbor. I always see Mico outside our house and playing together with other children in our place and I also hear his mother scold him whenever I pass through their house. I thought there is something wrong with the child or within the family so I prefer to interview them for this case study.

C. Presenting Problem

                     Mico is a typical 5 years old boy who grew up with his mother. His father was stay-in in his work and most of the time it is very far to their house. They are the second family. Mico's father has an original family so  he is rarely go and visit his son. Mico was the eldest. When his mother got pregnant, he became very naughty, and attention-seeker. It became worst when her mother gave birth to his younger sister Mica. He always get jealous to Mica and wants to get the attention of her mother. He is doing it by always playing outside and doing anything together with his friends Sensen and Maki that is why instead of getting hid mother's attention, her mother always get angry to him and that's the reason why Mico's behavior gets even worse.

D. Psychological History

D.1 Time line

D.2 Genogram

GENOGRAM OF DORA FAMILY

D.3 Sociogram

SOCIO GRAM IN SCHOOL

SOCIO GRAM IN THE HOME

D.4 Personality Dynamics for Self-Mastery

                        Mico was a loving and caring child to her parents but not to his younger sister Mica because he thought that Mica steal the attention of his parents from him. He is a typical child who really wants to play outsuide, dealing with other peers. Mico is also a naughty one that cause his mother to get angry at him.He is a little bit spoiled but not like other children who are not  self- directed. He knows how to take care of himself . And according to his mother, Mico thinks maturely but not in their case of her younger sister.

D.5 Personality Dynamics for Relationship

                       Mico's relationship with his mother is ideal until his younger sister came. They love each other, his mother is always taking care of him and he gets all the attention of his mother and his father because he is the only child.Even though he is not too close with his father because if his work, he always gets what he wants. And his father loves him so much. When his younger sister came, the attention  that he was getting was divided to the two of them that's why his relationship with his younger sister is not so good. Since then, his relationship with his mother is not the same as before. He spent more of his time outside playing rather than helping his mother to take care of his younger sister.

D.6 Personality Dynamics for Action

                      Mico prefer to do things on his own. His mother taught him to be self-directed. He can dress up, brush his teeth, go to school, fix his bed and take a bath on his own. Even in doing his homework, he ask for the help of his mother but when he already know what to do, he will continue it on his own.

                      In school setting, he always obey what his teacher said. He is reading, writing and joining activities happily. Even though sometimes, it is unavoidable for him to be lazy, he still do the task. Mico is an average student. He respects his teacher and classmates but there are times when he become very naughty and talkative but then, it is normal for a 5-year-old child.

E. Theoretical Framework

BIRTH ORDER THEORY BY ALFRED ADLER

Child’s Behavior	Concepts
1. Mico is very naughty and attention-      seeker when his mother gave birth to his younger sister.	1.      First born children have an innate fear of being dethroned. They tend to be selfish with possessions and attention.
2.      Mico prefers to do things on his own. He is self – directed.	2.  First born may become overachievers in    order to set example for younger siblings and meet the expectations of parents.
3.  Mico does what he wants to do. He follows what he wants.	3.  First born want things their way.
4.  Mico is always playing outside together with his friends.	4.  First born are energetic.
5.  Mico’s mother is always taking care of him and he gets all the attention.	5.  The first born child is usually the child with the most attention directed to him/her. This common event is part of the reason why this particular child turns out the way he/she does.

First Born Children

The first born child is usually the child with the most attention directed at him/her. This common event is part of the reason this particular child turns out the way he/she does. There are two typical types of first born children, compliant and aggressive. The first born in your family can be either one of these two types, and have these typical traits:

Compliant Traits

• People Pleasers
• Crave Approval
• Nurturers
• Caregivers
• Reliable
• Concientious
• Cooperative
• Team Players
• "Grin and bear it" mentatlity

Aggressive Traits

• Movers and shakers
• Natural leaders
• Perfectionists
• Driven
• Conventional
• Always have things under control
• Assertive
• Want things their way

These two types of first born children may seem very different, but they do share quite a few characteristics.
Common Traits

• Energetic
• Logical
• Ambitious
• Enterprising
• Scholarly

F. Prognosis

          As I observed and interviewed the child and some of the significant people in his life I can say that the child is really seeking for the attention of his parents. He was used that he is the only child and felt strange when his younger sister was born. I think it was not fully explained to him that he will going to have a younger sister and needs to be prepared for it and even though they are already two children in the family they will still receive the same love from their parents but the attention and care is mostly needed by her sister because she cannot yet direct and take care of herself.

          I think it is not really a serious problem because it is normal for  every brothers or sisters. It can be solved by proper explanation and time. Because as time goes by, Mico will already understand the situation and will also be a loving brother to his sister.

          But this problem should not be ignored because this attention-seeking may lead to serious behavioral problem when not corrected or not given enough attention immediately. I can see that Mico is misbehaving because he thinks that it is the only way to get the attention of his parents. It should be explained to him  that he can do some helpful deed to his mother by helping her in taking care of his sister rather than misbehaving.

G. Therapeutic Plan

G.1 Knowledge Building

          At the end of the case the client child must understand his obligation to his family as the eldest son to his parents and as an elder brother to his sister.

G.2 Skills Building

          At the end of the case the client child must develop comprehension skills where he will ba able to understand and cope up with the situation.

G.3 Attitude Building

          At the end of the case the client child must be able to value every significant people in his life.

H. Therapeutic Intervention

Objectives	Activities	Schedule
G.1 Knowledge Building           At the end of the case the client child must understand his obligation to his family as the eldest son to his parents and as an elder brother to his sister.	Role Playing -          The client child will role play a situation where in they will be left by their parents in the house and he is the one to take care of his younger sister.	March 13, 2011- Sunday  10:00 am-12:00 pm
G.2 Skills Building           At the end of the case the client child must develop comprehension skills where he will be able to understand and cope up with the situation.	Give situations to the child that is related to the problem and let the child analyze the situation.	March 14, 2011- Monday   1:00 pm-3:00 pm
G.3 Attitude Building           At the end of the case the client child must be able to value every significant people in his life.	Ask the child if who are the significant people in his life and ask him on how he can show his love for them.	March 16, 2011- Wednesday   3:00 pm – 5:00 pm

I. Therapeutic Progress

Activities	Schedule	Progress
Role Playing           The client child will role play a situation where in they will be left by their parents in the house and he is the one to take care of his younger sister.	March 13, 2011- Sunday  10:00 am-12:00 pm	I ask the child to play the role of a brother. His friends play the role of mother, father and sister. The situation is the father and mother left them in the house and he is the one who is left to take care of his sister. He take good care of his sister, he fed her and guided her in everything she do. Today. As I see in the child and his sister, their relationship gets better and sometimes I can see them playing together. And his mother is not always getting mad at him.
Give situations to the child that is related to the problem and let the child analyze the situation.	March 14, 2011- Monday   1:00 pm-3:00 pm	I give situations to the child and ask him what if questions. He answered the questions but not as serious as expected because the child is only five years old. And his understanding about certain things is not yet fully developed. As of now, I think the activity doesn’t really affect the child’s understanding of the situation but with proper explanation and attention from his parents, he is slowly getting into the process.
G.3 Attitude Building           At the end of the case the client child must be able to value every significant people in his life.	March 16, 2011- Wednesday   3:00 pm – 5:00 pm	I ask the child about the significant people in his life. He told me that he loves his mother, father, sister, friends, classmates and his teacher. Then I asked him on how he shows it to them. He said, he can show it to his parents by hugging them. I asked him how about your sister but he didn’t answer the question instead he changed the topic. Now, I can see that he really values his sister but he cannot show it to her because of being jealous to her.

J. Therapeutic Result

          The result of the activities is quite effective. As of now, I cannot really determine whether it can change the child's behavior but after the first activity I see that the relationship of Mico and his younger sister gets better and sometimes I can see them playing together. And his mother is not always getting mad at him. And after the second activity, I observe that he is now getting into the situation. He is understanding it little by little and I believe that as time goes by, he will fully understand it. The last activity proves that even though he does not express  his love for her sister, he still value her. Which is a very good star for their harmonious relationship. There is a big change in Mico's behavior since we finished the activities.

K. Summary, Conclusion and Recommendation

Summary

      

          My client child is Mico Dora and he is five years old. He is our neighbor and I asked for the permission of his mother before I interview the child. The problem as identified by his mother is that Mico often get jealous to his younger sister Mica because he thought that Mica stole all the attention that is intended for him. The significant events in  his life is his birthday, when they transferred from Cebu to Manila, when his younger sister was born, when his mother noticed the change in his behavior and his first day in school. His relationship with his family and classmates are good. He prefers to do things on his own. He is self-directed. I related the theory of Alfred Adler which is Birth Order Theory. It states that the birth order affects the behavior of an individual. I identified that the problem in the child is that he is attention-seeker. He was used that all the attention was given to him. My objectives is for Mico to understand his obligation to his parents and sister, to develop comprehension skills for him to understand the situation and to value the significant people in his life. O designed some activities in order for me to achieve my objectives and as I see the activities are effective because I can see some changes in the child's behavior. But I believe that the child is still on the process of accepting the reality.

Conclusion

          I therefor conclude that the problem about the child's behavior towards her sister is getting better and that the child is already in the process of understanding his responsibility as a brother and do not need to compete for the attention of their parents because they are brothers. I know that as time goes by, everything will be fine in their family. 

Recommendation

          I recommend that the family will continue to support the child in his ongoing process of understanding the situation. Especially the parents yo continue their love and understanding on the behavior of their children. And to foster continuous communication to their children so that the children will not feel neglected. They should also have equal love and attention to their children to avoid this kind of problem. For the teacher, I recommend her to continue in giving activities that will further develop his skills and to nurture the child for the development of his whole personality.

L. Implications to Education and Assessment

          This kind of problem is very common to children because this is the time when they are seeking for the attention of others especially their parents. As teachers , we are the one who is trusted by the children to share their problems. Therefor, we should know how to deal with it. This case study will help us to have knowledge or preview about the things that we need to consider when dealing with the problems of children. Through this kind of observation, we can have better understanding of the children and for us to know the reasons why this certain misbehavior occur. And also for us to be prepared in designing activities for children with mistaken behavior. In educating young children we should first have background knowledge about the child for us to know what should we consider in dealing with them. It is also the same in assessing children. If a child is not doing well in school, we shall not immediately make judgments about the child but we should take into consideration the factors why this happen. As a teacher we should be flexible  in performing different roles such as an observer and a catalyst.

SUMMARY IN ECED 11 (AUTHENTIC ASSESSMENT)

Joining 

What come first into your mind when you hear the word joining? Yes, there is something to do with the connection, unity. Joining means bringing closer to one another, comes together with in an individual. Joining is one of the key elements that has been discussed for a family therapy. The process of joining begins with the first family contact and continues as the foundation for effective family therapy. Rather than an event, it is more a process of understanding and building rapport with each family member.  General psychotherapy models share the goals of empathy and positive regard for clients.  So why do you think the General psychotherapy models share these goals?  Simply , because along these goals, family therapy integrates with systemic thinking, so that the result is a type of systemic empathy in which the clinician identifies and describes the unique roles and dilemmas experiences by each family members.

Methods of Joining  

Each family has a unique blend of characteristics that serves as interpersonal cues to family.  Additionally, each family has a complex structure that provides roles for interaction among members with the outside world.  Family therapist places a high priority on being attentive and responsive to family members.  Why do you think family therapist place a high priority on being attentive and responsive to family members?  Simply, to have adequate understanding in every individual, about their characteristics and so to respond accordingly.  So, joining is about an attitude and skills.  To connect with the family members, the therapist must convey acceptance as a family members and respect for their way of seeing and doing things.  The therapist must let the family know that they are understood and their views are important.

 Family members must be encouraged to express their feelings and views and to understand that these feelings are normal. 

The therapist can join with the family members in the ff. ways :

1.      Greet each members of the family by name.

2.      Make friendly contact with each member.  The therapist should ask each members what he/ she does, where they live, to share information about children

3.      Respect the family hierarchy.  The therapist must begin with the parents when asking each member about his/her view about the problem.

4.      Acknowledge each member’s experience, position and actions. ( So, Ms. Brown , you think your son runaway because he was angry with you )

5.      Normalize experiences, views and actions. (It is common for people in t\your situation to feel the way you do.)

6.      Validate positive things you can say about family members whenever possible.    (Ms. Jones, I know you have tried your best to help your son.  It shows that you care him.

Selective Joining

It is a process wherein the therapist may often choose to affiliate with the most peripheral members in the family or, in some cases, make some efforts to get closer to the family member who will most likely bring the family to therapy.

There may be occasions when the therapist is unable to join with the family, because it is difficult to join with family in which members have difficult from the therapist personality while these feelings are understandable, therapist must find way to engage the family if they are to be effective in altering the situation.  That is why Milton Erickson developed the process called utilization to address this issue.  He learned to use, rather than challenge, a person’s way of relating.  For example, he would think f hostility as honesty and encouraged the client to use it in solving the problem.  He would reframe detached personality as cautious or careful and search for a context in which this behavior would be advantageous.  Family members must feel that the therapist is supportive and understand them before they change how they interact with each other. 

One trend in family therapy facilitates the joining process by helping the therapist identify family strengths in spite of the severity of the problem.  

Identifying Family Strengths

Knowledge of family strengths helps the therapist understand how families cope with problems and how they promote growth and development.  Focusing on family strengths and resources contributes to the development of self- confidence, inspires hope and enhances growth within the family. Here are some guidelines that’s helps to identify family strengths;

1.      Emphasize positive statements

2.      Encourage family members

3.      Note family interactions that reflect strength and competence

4.      Emphasize times that family members enjoy together

5.      Re frame problems and emphasize what families do well.

Exploring the Referral Process

The referral process includes interaction within the family and between the family and other system.  When individuals are being interviewed alone, it is important to assess whether their motivation for counseling is internal or whether they have been sent by family or friends who want them “fixed”.  Detailed questions about the referral process often help the family therapist expand the definition of the problem.  If intake information has noted previous experiences in therapy, these should also be explored as part of the client’s problem-solving history. 

Sometimes informal helpers become unrecognized influences on the course therapy unless they are identified during such discussion.  This focus on the referral process often provides a micro view of diverse relationships that may have some bearing on the problem.  As this larger context is taken into account, the clinician should then pursue more specific question regarding the potential structure of subsequent therapy session. 

Deciding whom to involve

 Certain questions provide the family therapist with the information necessary to determine the structure of the therapy:

1. How did you decide who would participate in today’s session?
2. Maybe you are more comfortable without _______ here.  Are some reasons why you prefer to leave them out?
3. What do you think might happen if______ were invited?
4. If I became insistent about inviting them, would it be uncomfortable that you might consider dropping out of counseling? 

The answers to these questions help the family therapist determine whether to insist on others’ attendance.  Certainly, there are many situations in which a person’s own framework for help would be violated and such an insistence would be inappropriate.  Conversely, there are times when a family therapist considers the attendance of others to be essential to a positive therapeutic outcome.  To resolve this dilemma successfully, the family therapist should conduct a self-evaluation on these issues: 

1. Have I elicited and acknowledged fears the client has about inviting others to join?
2. Have I illustrated to the client how can I orchestrate a constructive outcome when others are included?
3. Do I know enough about these other people, and do I have the skills necessary to set goals that guarantee the outcome of such meeting?
4. Am I ignoring messages from the client about what essential to them?
5. Am I operating out of a model that narrows my perception of how I can be helpful?
6. Does the client have important information to which I should defer than insisting on a certain structure?

 The answer to these questions can help the practitioner weigh priorities and skills.  In some cases, clients can be shown how inclusion of others is helpful.  However, if clients are still opposed to inviting others after they have explained their reluctance and they have been reassuring explanations, it is imperative that the therapist accept the clients position.

Defining the problem

The definition of the problem evolves from the questions not only about the individual’s opinion but also his/her significant other’s opinion.

This can be accomplished through question that focus initially on family members’ opinions and then move towards the tracking of international sequences.

Assessing clients’ Definition of the Problem

To begin a dialogue about the problem with a family or individual, the family therapist might ask the following questions:

1. What’s brings here?
2. What would be helpful for us to discuss?
3. Who first noticed the problem and how long ago was this?
4. What led you (or another person) to conclude that this was a problem?
5. Who else agrees or disagrees that this is the problem?
6. Who else (inside or outside the family) as an opinion about the problem?
7. Have you or anyone else thought of any other possibilities regarding what the problem might?
8. Are there times when the problem isn’t occurring?  What is going on at those times?
9. What are the differences between times when the problem does and doesn’t occur?
10. What will happen if things don’t change?

It is important to accept the family members’ description of the problem without criticism or premature advice.  It is also essential to validate the importance of each member’ contribution.  If family members interrupt each other, remind them that each will have an opportunity to express his or her view.

A therapist might use the following to help each family member clarify the problem:

1. What do you mean by _____?
2. Give me some examples of_______?
3. Describe a situation when you_____?
4. How does this affect you now?
5. How does ______affect you?
6. Tell me the last time ______happened 

The goal is to help each family members be specific and concrete so that the problem defined more solvable.

Often, a family member presents several problems.  In such cases, clinicians need to clarify the problem by providing questions that prioritize the person’s concerns:

1. What needs to be changed now?
2. So the first change we need to make is ______?
3. What might happen if ______ doesn’t change?
4. What do you think would happen if_____occured?

The therapist also wants to focus on times when the problem is not occurring:

1. When you are able to handle the problem?
2. What are you doing differently in these situations?
3. What seems to be different when you are able to manage?

Group 6 members

Rachel Alajas                                                Lerry Lamanilao

Cherry H. Billones                                         Jennifer A. Murao                                                           

Recelyn C. De Quiroz                                    Maria Love lee Obusan

Michelle A. Doong                                        Lalaine P. Sibulangcao