What is the difference between micro and macro level perspectives on family?

Why are families changing, and what are the differences between macro and micro- level influence, and what influences do the portray on the family? While we are all aware that families are changes compared to many years ago such in their choices to marry or to divorce; most of these changes are due to economic issues and having to care for the parents or loved ones. To better understand these choices, many people look at the macro and micro-levels that influence their decisions, where social interactions focusing on those individuals (micro-level perspective). As for the constraints (the macro-level perspective), that limits people options, by using a large scale pattern that characterizes society as a whole. “Both perspectives, and the ways …show more content…
Soon the father and mother are struggling to care for their child and can’t make ends meet, causing strain and pressures to build; eventually causing one to lose their job. After a while the mother decides to take matters into her own hands and take on a part-time position to help bring in a paycheck and to help support the child, but soon it becomes overwhelming for her to continue on with her duties as wife, mother and sole-provide; and soon they decide to go their separate ways. This is what is known as micro-level influences, a turn of events that took us on a different path then the one we were currently going down; making people become outright judgmental. Soon everyone has their own opinions as to what went wrong in their relationship, and start becoming the experts as to what should have been; or what could have been for this couple. In other words, the start to play the blame game saying they should have been adults, and awaited having children; their just being selfish and unrealistic. “On the other hand, micro explanations should be keep in prospective, many marriages and family text-books and pop psychology books stress the importance of individual choices but ignore micro-level variables” (Jones, ASID, IIDA, and Phyllis Sloan Allan, L.M., 2009 pg.

Continue Reading

    Social work doesn’t just help individual people. Instead, it works across three scales — micro, mezzo and macro — to create change.

    What does a social worker do? If you believe the mainstream media, which generally portrays social workers engaging in one-on-one sessions with individuals or perhaps with families, you might perceive the position as one that functions on a relatively small scale.

    In reality, this is only one type of work that social workers do. The practice is typically categorized into three interrelated scales: micro, mezzo and macro. For those considering a career in social work, an understanding of the vast opportunities available at each level is imperative.

    1) Micro-Level

    When people imagine the day-to-day activities of social workers, they’re usually thinking about the micro level. This is the most common type of social work, and involves direct interaction with clients to address individual problems.

    Common examples of micro-level work include helping people find housing, health care and social services. Individual and family counseling also fall under this category, as do certain kinds of mental health and substance abuse treatment. Micro-level social work can be offered by agencies and nonprofits, as well as in schools, police departments or even the military.

    Since micro-level social work involves sensitive interactions with individuals, undergraduate degrees in fields like psychology or sociology can be especially helpful for students hoping to work in this field.

    2) Mezzo-Level

    While micro social work happens on an individual level, mezzo-level social work zooms out to look at groups instead of individuals. Of course, the smallest “group” is the family unit, but mezzo social work extends far beyond that. Many practitioners use micro and mezzo social work simultaneously to solve problems in businesses, schools, organizations and communities.

    Since mezzo-level social work addresses group issues, it is a valuable tool for creating small-scale institutional, social and cultural change. Undergraduate degrees in psychology (with an emphasis on group psychology) or sociology help build a solid foundation for this kind of work.

    3) Macro-Level

    Macro-level social work involves interventions and advocacy on a large scale, affecting entire communities, states or even countries. It helps clients by intervening in large systems that may seem beyond the reach of individuals.

    For many people unfamiliar with the field, macro-level work may not even be recognizable as social work. Macro social workers may be involved in crafting laws or petitioning local, state or even federal governments for funds to help communities. They may also organize state- or nation-wide activist campaigns.

    Since macro social work often involves governmental assistance or interventions, an undergraduate background in a macro-level discipline like political science will prepare students well for this career path.

    Working Across the Scales

    While certain social workers specialize in one aspect of the micro-to-macro scale, most social workers interact with all three levels. As such, social workers must understand the entire spectrum and how the scales interact.

    Think of a school counselor, for example, who is tasked with helping a child who is facing difficulties at school and acting out. While the initial interaction between counselor and student represents social work on the micro-level, the counselor may discover that the child is reacting to negative situations at home. At this point, the social worker may move into the mezzo level to address the family conflicts at the root of the student’s behavior. This can easily scale up to the macro level: if familial instability is caused by adverse economic conditions, the social worker could, in turn, begin to advocate for better job training within the community.

    Without an understanding of every stage from micro to macro, social workers will struggle to enact individual, group or society-wide change. Success in social work depends on the ability to seamlessly navigate and combine all levels of social work to deliver successful outcomes for clients and communities.

    What is the difference between micro

    Key Points. Macro-level sociology looks at large-scale social processes, such as social stability and change. Micro-level sociology looks at small-scale interactions between individuals, such as conversation or group dynamics.

    What is the difference between macro and micro

    So, just to put that another way, micro problems are what's going on in your world. Macro problems are what's going on in the world. It's important to be able to make this distinction, because as you'll learn, that shines a light on the road ahead.

    What is the difference between micro and macro theory?

    Microeconomics is the study of individuals and business decisions, while macroeconomics looks at the decisions of countries and governments. Though these two branches of economics appear different, they are actually interdependent and complement one another.

    Is family systems theory micro or macro?

    Introduction to Family Systems Theory Family is considered a basic human system. This theory is considered a micro theory because it focuses on each family member and they're role.