Final answer:
When family members are unhappy and take out their unhappiness on a specific individual, that person is known as a scapegoat. Scapegoating involves displacing blame or negative feelings onto someone else within the family, which mimics similar patterns seen in broader societal contexts.
Step-by-step explanation:
When family members are discontented with one another and when they directly or indirectly take out this unhappiness on a specific family member, that member is said to have been scapegoated. The concept of scapegoating refers to the psychological or social practice of displacing aggression, blame, or negative feelings from the actual source of conflict onto another individual, who then becomes the target for blame or frustration even if they are not responsible for the problem. The scapegoat becomes a way for the family to manage conflict without addressing the root cause, much like how broader societies have historically displaced societal or economic issues onto marginalized groups.
Theories such as the Frustration-Aggression theory and its extension, scapegoat theory, help explain the psychological mechanisms behind why certain family members or individuals become scapegoats. Additionally, displacement is a defense mechanism where a person transfers their inappropriate urges or behaviors onto a more acceptable or less threatening target, which further elucidates the dynamics within family conflicts. Scapegoating and displacement can cause significant emotional damage to the scapegoat and can also prevent the family from addressing the real issues that need resolution.