Stress and Conflict in Family: Changing the Role Functions

According to Bennett, changing roles can create stress and conflicts within the family setup. In a traditional family setting, men are generally viewed as the breadwinners in their families, while women are considered the caretakers of family members. They prepare meals, take care of the laundry, and ensure that children are prepared every morning to go to school. A family that has assumed this traditional approach in defining the function of each family member may face a number of challenges when the roles are reversed. When the man is given the role of the woman, he may be very uncomfortable. He may develop a feeling that his status as the head of the family has been taken away from him.

This may affect his ego so much that he may become violent towards members of the family. The violence demonstrates that he feels that his position has been taken, but he wants to reclaim it through every effort. On the other hand, the woman may feel that she is burdened when she is forced to be the breadwinner of the family. As a family nurse, I may suggest a change of attitude among the members involved. I will try to dispel their idea that some functions are only meant to be done by a given family member. I will try to convince the affected parties that they have equal responsibility to ensure that their family is running normally. It does not matter who is assigned a specific responsibility.