Family systems therapy - Systems and Postmodern Approaches Flashcards
Founder:
A number of significant figures have been pioneers of the family systems approach, two of whom include Murray Bowen and Virginia Satir.
Theories
This systemic approach is based on the assumption that the key to changing the individual is understanding and working with the family.
Basic Principles
The family is viewed from an interactive and systemic perspective. Clients are connected to a living system; a change in one part of the system will result in a change in other parts. The family provides the context for understanding how individuals function in relationship to others and how they behave. Treatment deals with the family unit. An individual’s dysfunctional behavior grows out of the interactional unit of the family and out of larger systems as well.
Key Concepts
Therapy tends to be brief and addresses the present and the future. The person is not the problem; the problem is the problem. The emphasis is on externalizing the problem and looking for exceptions to the problem. Therapy consists of a collaborative dialogue in which the therapist and the client co-create solutions. By identifying instances when the problem did not exist, clients can create new meanings for themselves and fashion a new life story.
Family systems therapy Focus is on communication patterns within a family, both verbal and nonverbal. Problems in relationships are likely to be passed on from generation to generation. Key concepts vary depending on specific orientation but include differentiation, triangles, power coalitions, family-of-origin dynamics, functional versus dysfunctional interaction patterns, and dealing with here-and-now interactions. The present is more important than exploring past experiences.
Goals of Therapy
To help family members gain awareness of patterns of relationships that are not working well and to create new ways of interacting. To identify how a client’s problematic behavior may serve a function or purpose for the family. To understand how dysfunctional patterns can be handed down across generations. To recognize how family rules can affect each family member. To understand how past family of origin experiences continue to have an impact on individuals.
The Therapeutic Relationship
The family therapist functions as a teacher, coach, model, and consultant. The family learns ways to detect and solve problems that are keeping members stuck, and it learns about patterns that have been transmitted from generation to generation. Some approaches focus on the role of therapist as expert; others concentrate on intensifying what is going on in the here and now of the family session. All family therapists are concerned with the process of family interaction and teaching patterns of communication.
Techniques
A variety of techniques may be used, depending on the particular theoretical orientation of the therapist. Some techniques include genograms, teaching, asking questions, joining the family, tracking sequences, family mapping, reframing, restructuring, enactments, and setting boundaries. Techniques may be experiential, cognitive, or behavioral in nature. Most are designed to bring about change in a short time.
Applications of the Approaches
Useful for dealing with marital distress, problems of communicating among family members, power struggles, crisis situations in the family, helping individuals attain their potential, and enhancing the overall functioning of the family.
Contributions to Multicultural Counseling
Focus is on the family or community system. Many ethnic and cultural groups place value on the role of the extended family. Many family therapies deal with extended family members and with support systems. Networking is a part of the process, which is congruent with the values of many clients. There is a greater chance for individual change if other family members are supportive. This approach offers ways of working toward the health of the family unit and the welfare of each member.
Limitations in Multicultural Counseling
Family therapy rests on value assumptions that are not congruent with the values of clients from some cultures. Western concepts such as individuation, self-actualization, self-determination, independence, and self-expression may be foreign to some clients. In some cultures, admitting problems within the family is shameful. The value of “keeping problems within the family” may make it difficult to explore conflicts openly.
Contributions of the Approaches
From a systemic perspective, neither the individual nor the family is blamed for a particular dysfunction. The family is empowered through the process of identifying and exploring interactional patterns. Working with an entire unit provides a new perspective on understanding and working through both individual problems and relationship concerns. By exploring one’s family of origin, there are increased opportunities to resolve other conflicts in systems outside of the family
Limitations of the Approaches
Limitations include problems in being able to involve all the members of a family in the therapy. Some family members may be resistant to changing the structure of the system. Therapists’ self-knowledge and willingness to work on their own family-of-origin issues is crucial, for the potential for countertransference is high. It is essential that the therapist be well trained, receive quality supervision, and be competent in assessing and treating individuals in a family context.
Genograms
Map of the family.
Parents listed with name, age and DOB
Rectangle for men
Circle for women
informal relationship ——–
formal relationship ___________
death x
gay man upside down triangle in the rectangle
gay woman upside down triangle in the circle
double parallel lines = strong relationship
3 parallel lines = enmeshed relationship
/\/\/\/\/\/ = conflict or distant
Genograms
Map of the family.
Parents listed with name, age and DOB
Rectangle for men
Circle for women
informal relationship ——–
formal relationship ___________
death x
gay man upside down triangle in the rectangle
gay woman upside down triangle in the circle
double parallel lines = strong relationship
3 parallel lines = enmeshed relationship
/\/\/\/\/\/ = conflict or distant
