Running Head: ETHNOGRAPHIC FAMILY STUDY

Ethnographic Family Study

Mary Glass
Wayne State University

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Abstract

This paper explores how my family members have affected the way I think and how I act. It will
explain where my family originated from and how they came to America. It is separated into the
three categories- biophysical, psychological, and sociological. I know when my sisters and I are
in the same room, everyone will know we are related. Genetically, I was given wonderful
features, yet some adverse health conditions. My family members have definitely influenced how
I believe the world should be. Being the youngest, I was able to watch the consequences of my
older siblings choices. The fact that we share some of the same psychological struggles helps
because we always have someone we can trust to talk to. It is comforting knowing that someone
else knows you very well. Though I was surrounded by well-meaning family members, I have
learned that some of their beliefs were not accurate. They never acted as though what they
believed was the only way. They attempted to introduce a love of learning so I can come to my
own conclusions about life. As I explain the misconceptions of their beliefs and my
interpretations, it should be clear to all that my family always had the best of intentions.

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Ethnographic Family Study

Our family dynamics affect how we think or act toward an event. A person will make
decisions based on their beliefs which will in turn reflect their values. Sometimes that influenced
belief could be misconstrued or the influential person is ignorant. In that case, the individual
person will need to seek the truth on their own. Every person is affected by their family
environment in the multidimensional levels of biophysical, sociology and psychology.
The family I was raised with consists of my dad, John, my mom, Margaret, and my two
older sisters, Mia and Jessica. Since I was only raised with sisters, our parents taught us how to
do anything a male or female would do depending on how much we wanted to learn. My parents
divorced in 1993 after 26 years of marriage. My mom married a man named Joseph, my step
father, in 1999. Before John had met Margaret he was married and divorced to a woman named
Patricia. They had a son, so therefore, I have an older step brother named Patrick.
My parents families have a European background. My dads family originally came from
Scotland. They moved to Canada, then to the Metro Detroit area. My moms family has a sordid
past and does not mention family history. The only fact I know is the family came from Europe
to the US. Her family primarily is settled in the Michigans Upper Peninsula.
My parents met in the Michigans Upper Peninsula. When they married, they moved to
the Lower Peninsula to a city named Madison Heights. We live there over 15 years. No one in
my family lives there anymore, but we have all stayed in the Metro Detroit area.
As my dad and his siblings began to settle in the Metro Detroit area, they took the time to
learn more about their heritage to teach the upcoming generations. We have had an annual
family reunion since 1979. Wearing our familys tartan and kilt is always fashionable at

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extended family events. Many people refer to tartans as plaids. A plaid is almost always of a
tartan or checkered pattern, but the correct term for the design itself is tartan, not plaid
(Forrester, 2003, p. 50). A great debate typically occurs since we are all strongly opinionated. It
is always a friendly debate, though some of the in-laws do not believe it is. Occasionally, we
will even have a bagpiper play. At our family funerals, a bagpiper will play Amazing Grace.
As a result, if I even faintly hear the bagpipes playing Amazing Grace anywhere, I will begin
to cry.
Biophysical
I have physical attributes from both of my parents. I am a Caucasian woman of European
descent. My body frame is a mix of my parents. I am not as short as my mom or as skinny as my
dad. So therefore, I am medium height and have a medium body frame. I have brown hair like
my sisters. My eyes are blue just like my moms eyes. Recently, I discovered through an
audiology test that I have 43% hearing loss in both ears. There is not anything physically wrong
with my ears; it is something I genetically inherited. My dad has had hearing problems all of my
life. Everyone in my family wears glasses or contacts due to nearsightedness.
I am currently going through medical tests to determine why I am having stomach issues.
When my dad was my age his stomach actually burst open due to ulcers. It was only discovered
when he passed out and was rushed to the hospital. I am grudgingly enduring the tests to avoid
emergency treatment. Due to the intestinal issues of my dad and myself, my diet has always been
generally bland. We rarely ate large portions of food, however; we ate often.

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Psychological
I was raised in a home that based decisions upon Judeo-Christian beliefs. My mom was
the strictest about a religious upbringing. My dad expected me to be honest and hardworking.
After a short time away for biblical instruction in my early twenties, I am currently a member of
a non-denominational church. I have now realized the importance of my own personal
relationship with God.
My biblical worldview affects how I perceive most situations. I believe I am made in the
image of God and I have the ability to make immoral decisions. Those concrete beliefs assist me
in everyday situations. I know that there will be times I make the wrong choice, nevertheless; I
know God loves me anyway. Because of my worldview I also value honesty, generosity, and a
strong work ethic. As I pursue my social work degree, I realize many people I may work with
will not have the same values and beliefs that I do, however; I know the importance of respecting
someone elses values and beliefs to find the best way to help them through how they interpret
the world.
I have struggled with anxiety issues at times in my life. My mother and my sisters have
battled similar issues. My stomach issues can sometimes heighten the anxious feelings because I
worry about feeling well all day. My doctor prescribed medication for anxiety issue several
years ago, but I did not like the side effects. To cope with the feelings of anxiety or stress, I
currently use breathing techniques to calm me down and attempt to think rationally. I have notice
the fact I am so busy with attending school full time, working part time, and all the other aspects
of my busy life, I do not have time to become anxious about events as I have in the past. I just
have to get them done and move on to the next task.

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As my father always does, I try to make it look as though everything is under control all
the time. I have to agree with Banduras social learning theories that you learn how to respond
to situations in your environment by observing your role model (Ashford & Lecroy, 2013, p.
101). It is difficult for me to let me guard down and allow people to know what is really going
on in my life. Just the other day as my dad lay in a hospital bed receiving a blood transfusion
because he had loss four pints of blood due to internal bleeding, he was trying to act as though
everything was alright. I knew it was not, but I went along with it to help him feel like
everything was under control.
The realization that I cannot control everything or hide the real problems in my life has
been bittersweet. When I do allow someone else to handle something I have done before, it is
refreshing to see the ideas they have. People have overwhelmed me with support when I have
endured difficulty in my life as long as I let them know it is occurring. I try to remember those
facts when I have an inclination to shy away and do everything on my own.
As stated before, strongly held opinions are common in my family, especially by my dad
and older sister, Mia. I definitely have strong opinions on certain topics and rarely fear sharing
them. If someone asks what I think about something it is difficult for me to not be completely
honest. Although I love to debate, I am learning that I need to communicate effectively. As I read
the specifics about the micro level of social work, I am learning to use empathetic
communication so I do not sound judgmental. Empathic communication involves the ability of
the social worker to perceive accurately and sensitively the inner feelings of the client and to
communicate his or her understanding of these feelings in language attuned to the clients
experiencing of the moment (Hepworth, Rooney, Rooney, & Strom-Gottfried, 2013, p. 95).
Applying these techniques will help me excel in as a social worker and in my personal life.

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Sociological
According to sociology terms, I would be classified as an introvert. My dad and older
sister, Mia, also shares that classification. I like people, but I definitely need time alone to
recharge. If I have time to relax, I can think more clearly and actually enjoy people. When I am
overwhelmed by activities and responsibilities, I tend to take more time to process what is
happening. If I do not have time to process actions and ideas, I can become irritable.
The social welfare theory of individual responsibility was definitely encouraged in my
household. The idea, that [a] person will see personal needs such as poverty, mental illness, and
family breakdown as issues that should be addressed by individual effort was very clear (Segal,
2013, p. 18). My family always encourages me to take care of myself. To succeed, you need to
work hard and you can make it. For the most part, I agreed with that until the most recent decline
in the US economy, when I could see people really trying to work hard and not succeeding. Jobs
were just not there. Food and gas prices were going up and donations to the poor were going
down. People were losing life fortunes in the stock market. I quickly realized sometimes a
single person cannot do enough.
It was not until this semester at Wayne State University through all the books, articles and
movies I had to read and watch that I realized I was raised in a house that encouraged aversive
racism. My parents rarely blatantly stated another race was inferior, however; it was implied.
My parents did not consider the obstacles that minorities have to overcome to do the same things
we enjoy. I read McIntoshs list of a white woman privileges including the ability to easily rent
or buy a home, find successful people everywhere that are the same race as me, and the
unlikeliness of being suspected of a potential crime for simply shopping at a store (Ashford &

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Lecroy, 2013, p. 186). I was overwhelmed by how true it is. I have several African American
friends that have shared with me some of their discriminatory experiences and I never
understood the depth of the discrimination that they face on a daily basis until I read that list of
20 privileges. Thankfully, I am now more aware of my bias thoughts, so I may make intentional
corrections in the future.
My life objective is to use my education and life experiences to change and create social
welfare policies. My educational goal is to earn a Masters degree of Social Work with a
concentration in Innovation in Community, Policy and Leadership. As I recall my own life
experiences and continue to pursue a social work education, I am frustrated by the lack of
knowledge policy makers actually have. I know research and statistics are formed for them to
examine, but they have no idea what it is like to actually live like some of the people they are
making policies for. My family was generally lower income and we definitely hit rock bottom a
couple times. The thought of using government services was unheard of in my household.
People need to understand that sometimes they truly need help and they should let people or the
government assists them. It should not be consider shameful to accept help.
As you may have notice only a few of my family members, really affected my life
choices. My parents and my older sister, Mia, were definitely the most influential. My middle
sister, Jessica, and my step brother, Patrick, are quite different than I am, so I have difficulty
relating with them. Since my parents were married until I was seventeen years old and my mom
did not remarried until I was living on my own, my step parent did not influence any of my
decisions.

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In conclusion, I know my family was just trying to ensure I would work hard and be
prepare for all the surprises life can bring. I sincerely believe they did the best they could and I
hope I do the best for my children. My family influences my life, but I have definitely made it
my own through my choices. The realization that the government and the individual can work
together to make a life worth living is the message I want to portray.

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Family
Genogram

1980 Family Portrait

Back left to right-Sisters- Jessica and Mia, Dad-John
Front- Me and Mom- Margaret

I loved the cow shirt I had on. If you squeezed the tail, it would make a mooing sound!

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References

Ashford, J. B., & Lecroy, C. W. (2013). Human Behavior in the Social Environment: A
Multidimensional Perspective (5th ed.). Belmont CA: Brooks/Cole, Cengage Learning.
Forrester, A. T. (2003). Scots in Michigan. East Lansing: Michigan State University Press.
Hepworth, D. H., Rooney, R. H., Rooney, G. D., & Strom-Gottfried, K. (2013). Direct Social
Work Practice: Theory and Skills, 9th ed. Belmont: Cengage Learning.
Segal, E. A. (2013). Social Welfare Policy and Social Programs: A Value Perspective. Belmont:
Brooks/Cole.