family dysfunction treatments Flashcards
strengths of family therapy.
debates
free will is encouraged in family therapy which helps patients anticipate and overcome issues together without the reliance on medical intervention regularly. it also takes an idiographic and more holistic approach as family therapy targets and improves the unique deficits of each individual. unlike drug therapies that provide a one fits all approach. it also has no side effects compared to biological treatments. This highlights the many advantages family therapy may have over drug treatments.
strengths of family therapy
effectiveness
McFarlane found it to be consistently effective reducing relapse rates by 50-60%
Pilling et al. did a meta analysis of family interventions and found it reduced psychotic relapse rates and readmissions by significant margins. Family therapy should be offered to patients if they coexist with caregivers so this therefore also has economic benefits.
weakness of family therapy
ethics and accessibility
family therapy relies heavily on informed consent and ethical boundaries may be crossed patients may become uncomfortable sharing such details and confidentiality issues may occur. Family therapy also requires the active involvement of all members which is not always possible or something family members can commit to in this case free will is not a good thing. Dysfunctional families may also care less to take part in such activities. Due to the length process as it can last up to a year symptoms or incidents may cause family members to drop out which also means the therapy is of great expense.
However… cost benefit analysis better to not get it for therapy rather than drugs which are invasive and have side effects.
weakness of family therapy
effectiveness
although studies generally show that family therapy reduces relapse rates in the short term many studies say that this effect drastically diminishes after 6 months and this improvement does not last longer than 6 months (Claxton et al.)
