Families are a collection of individuals coming together to create a unit, which means they bring resources together and continue to (hopefully) contribute to those resources in positive ways. The National Council on Family Relations defines Family Resource Management as “an understanding of the decisions individuals and families make about developing and allocating resources including time, money, material assets, energy, friends, neighbors, and space, to meet their goals” (ncfr.org). This is important for Family Life Educators to have a grasp on because sometimes families need help in order to understand how to steward their resources wisely.
One lens that we can look at this content area through is Social Exchange Theory. This theory explains why families make certain decisions regarding finances, assets, and other resources they hold. They weigh the costs and benefits of certain decisions, deciding which avenues will most likely contribute to their wellbeing and meet their goals. An example of this in action would be that a family creating a budget and deciding how much money to save per month based on assets that they want to attain later, or a retirement plan, etc. Social Exchange Theory helps us understand, as family life educators, how families make decisions about their resources.
One lens that we can look at this content area through is Social Exchange Theory. This theory explains why families make certain decisions regarding finances, assets, and other resources they hold. They weigh the costs and benefits of certain decisions, deciding which avenues will most likely contribute to their wellbeing and meet their goals. An example of this in action would be that a family creating a budget and deciding how much money to save per month based on assets that they want to attain later, or a retirement plan, etc. Social Exchange Theory helps us understand, as family life educators, how families make decisions about their resources.
Academic Preparation
- The Family
- Family Relationships and Gender Roles
- Introduction to Marriage and Family Therapy
Work/Volunteer Experience
- Intern at the Homestead Ministry
- Undergraduate Research Assistant
Reflection
My academic preparation, combined with real-life experience, has resulted in me understanding Family Resource Management thoroughly. I have watched multiple families and individuals make decisions regarding their resources, including my own. Finances have been a big topic of tension in my family, and for several years they were a source of significant and long-term stress.
I do not think I understood the significance of this area of family and personal life until I was learning to steward my own resources in college. I realized that goals were extremely important, and that financial goals are especially effective when put into a budget. In order to make progress and continue to grow and move forward, families need to set goals for how they will manage their resources. If goals are not set, or if action steps are not set in place to reach those goals, progress will be slow in the respective area of family life. This is true in terms of money, but also (and especially) true in terms of other resources such as time and energy. These resources are such that it is easy to forget that families and individuals have control over them, and then they get wasted.
In today’s culture, families are decently careless when it comes to how they use their time. For example, many families find that they are lacking in time with one another, and they are often confused as to why this is the case. They run frantically from school and work to extracurricular activities, and time spent around the dinner table dissipates. Family nights become fewer and farther between. Families experience the effects of this lack of time spent together, but they are often confused as to why they feel disjointed and disconnected, or why they are experiencing more interpersonal conflict. They do not realize that these feelings of tension are often a direct result of poor resource management. This is also true in the financial realm. Non-normative life events, such as divorce or a sudden death, can wreak havoc on a family if they have not aligned their resources to be prepared for such an event. Obviously, families have little to no control over non-normative events. However, there are ways to steward resources to prepare for unfortunate occurrences, such as life insurance or drafting a will.
Although I have fairly extensive personal experience with how difficult this area of family life is, my experience is weaker in terms of professional experience. Although my family would probably classify as solid middle-class, we have experienced a rollercoaster of financial hardship. Despite this, we still live with a fair amount of privilege, and have been blessed to experience a relatively comfortable life.
One of the most valuable experiences I have had so far in Family Resource Management is being an intern at the Homestead. Although the ladies in the program come to us as individuals, many of them have children and families back home that they are striving to be able to provide for adequately. These women are often among the most impoverished, underprivileged individuals imaginable. They have faced extensive trauma and difficulty. Their priorities have been protecting themselves and feeding drug addictions rather than protecting their assets or feeding themselves or their children. They need help and equipping to learn how to manage what little resources they come in with, and they need us to help them network in order to find jobs and education in order to be able to meet their own personal needs and goals.
Family Resource Management may seem like a mundane, straightforward area of family life. However, it is one of the most important. Without basic resources, it is difficult for families to thrive, not to mention survive. As family life educators, we need to understand how to educate families who may be unfamiliar with how to manage their resources. This will set up a foundation for success that will last for years to come. As the old proverb says, “give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.”
I do not think I understood the significance of this area of family and personal life until I was learning to steward my own resources in college. I realized that goals were extremely important, and that financial goals are especially effective when put into a budget. In order to make progress and continue to grow and move forward, families need to set goals for how they will manage their resources. If goals are not set, or if action steps are not set in place to reach those goals, progress will be slow in the respective area of family life. This is true in terms of money, but also (and especially) true in terms of other resources such as time and energy. These resources are such that it is easy to forget that families and individuals have control over them, and then they get wasted.
In today’s culture, families are decently careless when it comes to how they use their time. For example, many families find that they are lacking in time with one another, and they are often confused as to why this is the case. They run frantically from school and work to extracurricular activities, and time spent around the dinner table dissipates. Family nights become fewer and farther between. Families experience the effects of this lack of time spent together, but they are often confused as to why they feel disjointed and disconnected, or why they are experiencing more interpersonal conflict. They do not realize that these feelings of tension are often a direct result of poor resource management. This is also true in the financial realm. Non-normative life events, such as divorce or a sudden death, can wreak havoc on a family if they have not aligned their resources to be prepared for such an event. Obviously, families have little to no control over non-normative events. However, there are ways to steward resources to prepare for unfortunate occurrences, such as life insurance or drafting a will.
Although I have fairly extensive personal experience with how difficult this area of family life is, my experience is weaker in terms of professional experience. Although my family would probably classify as solid middle-class, we have experienced a rollercoaster of financial hardship. Despite this, we still live with a fair amount of privilege, and have been blessed to experience a relatively comfortable life.
One of the most valuable experiences I have had so far in Family Resource Management is being an intern at the Homestead. Although the ladies in the program come to us as individuals, many of them have children and families back home that they are striving to be able to provide for adequately. These women are often among the most impoverished, underprivileged individuals imaginable. They have faced extensive trauma and difficulty. Their priorities have been protecting themselves and feeding drug addictions rather than protecting their assets or feeding themselves or their children. They need help and equipping to learn how to manage what little resources they come in with, and they need us to help them network in order to find jobs and education in order to be able to meet their own personal needs and goals.
Family Resource Management may seem like a mundane, straightforward area of family life. However, it is one of the most important. Without basic resources, it is difficult for families to thrive, not to mention survive. As family life educators, we need to understand how to educate families who may be unfamiliar with how to manage their resources. This will set up a foundation for success that will last for years to come. As the old proverb says, “give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.”