Dani is a 14-year-old, biracial female of African and Irish American descent who resides with her parents in a middle-class suburb

Review the Learning Resources on psychological development.

Review Dani’s case in the Social Work Case Studies interactive media in the Learning Resources.

Consider Dani’s case, focusing on any high-risk behaviors she may be exhibiting.

Write a brief explanation of the high-risk behaviors that Dani is exhibiting.

Describe the theoretical approaches and practice skills you would employ in working with Dani. How might familial relationships influence Dani’s mood and behavior? Please use the Learning Resources to support your analysis.

NOTE: please don’t be bias with answer.

Dani is a 14-year-old, biracial female of African and Irish American descent who resides with her parents in a middle-class suburb. She is the youngest of three children and is currently the only child remaining in the home. Dani’s parents have been married for 25 years. Dani’s father works in the creative arts field with a nontraditional work schedule that has him gone overnight and sleeping late into the morning. Dani’s mother is an executive who works long hours. Dani was diagnosed with sickle cell anemia in early childhood and was hospitalized multiple times. At present, Dani’s health is stable with the last serious episode occurring 2 years ago.

Dani’s parents reported that until middle school, Dani was an easygoing, good-natured youngster who enjoyed singing and participating in activities with her peers and family. Dani denied any problems with drugs or alcohol but admitted to drinking with friends. Dani described her family relationships as tense, stating, “My dad lets me do what I want” and “My mother is always trying to control me.” Dani described her relationship with her older brother, who lives in another state, as “cool,” and her relationship with her older sister, a college sophomore, as “not cool.”

Dani’s parents sought out counseling services for behavioral issues on the recommendation of her school. The issues included argumentative behavior with authority figures, physical altercations with peers, poor concentration in class, irritable mood, verbal combativeness when confronted, truancy, and highly sexualized behavior with male peers. On one occasion, a teacher had witnessed her and a male peer being intimate in the girl’s bathroom at school. At home, Dani had become more argumentative and physically threatening. Her parents had discovered that she and her friends drank alcohol regularly in their home when they were away. Dani’s parents also reported that she was up most of the night and slept most of the day. They also reported that her mood was highly irritable and that she was extremely impulsive. She had no interest in getting involved with any extracurricular activities, stating that those things are “corny and boring.”

 

Individual and Family Sessions

 

The Tattoo

 

In the first meeting, Dani and her mother both appeared agitated with each other and

 

became argumentative when going through the intake information. Dani quickly told me

 

that she was not planning to talk about anything because this meeting was her parents’

 

idea. She stated, “I don’t have any problems, my parents do.” Soon into this first visit,

 

Dani blurted out that her mother was upset with her because she had just shown her a

 

tattoo she had had done recently, purchased using a fake ID. I acknowledged her news

 

and asked if this was the way that she usually shared important information with her

 

mother. Dani shrugged and stated, “I don’t know. I figure I better her tell her now before

 

she gets too busy.”

 

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© 2021 Walden University, LLC. Adapted from Plummer, S. -B., Makris, S., & Brocksen, S. M. (Eds.). (2014). Social

 

work case studies: Foundation year. Laureate International Universities Publishing.

 

Dani’s Mother

 

I asked both Dani and her mother what their expectations were for counseling and what

 

each would like to get from these visits. Dani’s mother seemed surprised and stated,

 

“This is for her. She better change her attitude and start to focus on school.” I explained

 

that often it is helpful to have sessions both individually and with family members. I also

 

pointed out that because family issues were identified it might be productive to address

 

them together. Dani’s mother agreed to attend some meetings but also stated that her

 

time was limited. I was told that Dani’s father would not be able to join us because he

 

was never available at that time.

 

Dani and I began sessions alone, and her mother joined us for the second half. During

 

the family sessions, we addressed the communication breakdown between Dani and

 

her mother and Dani’s at-risk behaviors. Individual sessions were used to address her

 

impulsive behavior and self-esteem issues.

 

Family Dynamics

 

In individual sessions, Dani talked about how the family had changed since her sister

 

left for college. She said her parents stopped being present and available once her

 

sister went away to school. She said she spent more time on her own and her behavior

 

was under more scrutiny. Dani also talked about her sister, describing her as an

 

excellent student and very popular. She said her teachers in middle school would often

 

compare Dani to her sister, making her feel unsuccessful in comparison. During

 

a family portion of a session, Dani’s mother initially disagreed with Dani’s point of view

 

regarding how the family had changed, stating, “She’s just trying to trick you.” I

 

encouraged them to discuss what was different about the family dynamics now

 

compared to when the older sister was at home. We discussed how the family had

 

changed through the years, validating both perspectives.

 

Dani’s Father

 

In time, I was able to have Dani’s father join us in some of the family meetings. He said

 

he felt Dani’s behaviors were just a phase and part of being a teenager. Dani’s parents

 

disagreed openly in our sessions, with each blaming the other for her behavioral issues.

 

During these sessions, we addressed how they each may have changed as their

 

children matured and left home and how this affected their availability to their youngest

 

child. I helped them identify what made Dani’s experience distinct from her siblings’ and

 

examine what her high-risk behaviors might be in reaction to or symptomatic of in the

 

family.

 

In the course of the family work, the realities of being a biracial family and raising mixed-

 

race children were also addressed. We discussed how the parents navigated race

 

issues during their own courtship and looked at the role of acculturation and assimilation

 

with their children in their social environments as well as respective families of origin.