Strateigic Family Therapy

Question 1

Aligning with Parental Generation:

Answer 1

Strategic:
A technique directed at strengthening the parental hierarchy and reinforcing that parents are in charge over the children. The therapist will break neutrality and intentionally align with the parental subsystem.

Question 2

Directives:

Answer 2

Strategic:
Specific, directed behavioral tasks for the family to engage in different behaviors in-session and then carried out into the home between sessions.

Question 3

Ordeal Therapy:

Answer 3

Strategic:
A paradoxical directive that places a client in a situation where it creates more work for them to maintain a problem symptoms or behavior than it would to change it. - exp a couple is encouraged to have ‘argue time’ but therapist tells them to rearrange living room like a courtroom before arguing… So much an ordeal they’ll not care as much about argument.

Question 4

Incongruous Hierarchies:

Answer 4

Strategic:

Occurs when children create symptoms in an attempt to change their parents.

Question 5

Strategic humanism

Answer 5

Madanes broke off and viewed love and happiness as appropriate therapy goals, that all problems arose betwen love and violence

Question 6

Presenting Symptom as Metaphor:

Answer 6

Strategic:
The symptom was redefined as a metaphor of a larger problem. For example, a child wetting his bed was a metaphor for keeping focus on him so his father can maintain his addiction to marijuana.

Question 7

Pretend to Have Symptom:

Answer 7

Strategic:
A form of paradoxical intervention where Madanes would instruct a child to have a symptom and instruct the parents to help the child through it.

Question 8

Reframing:

Answer 8

Strategic:

Presenting an alternative perspective on a family members view of another’s problematic behavior.

Question 9

Unbalancing:

Answer 9

Strategic:
An intervention where the therapist intentionally sides with one family member over the other, meant to disrupt homeostasis and encourage change at the behavioral and structural level.

Question 10

Strategic Differences from MRI & Milan

Answer 10

~ began looking at Fam structure
~ parental hierarchy is essential… So parents first align with parents
~ family life cycle very important!
~ first session very imp 4 stages = 1. Joining, 2. Problem, Each member shares viewpoint of problem 3. Interaction stage, assessment of family interactions 4. Goal setting - what has been tried and failed and the add small changes
~ brief but not super brief no limit to 10 sessions
~ goals to obtain symptom relief and shift structure of family
~ not as much a team approach

Question 11

Strategic Family Therapy:
Key Ideas:
Audio File 11:

Answer 11

Classical Schools of Family Therapy.

Similar to Milan and MRI
Unique differences:

~ began looking at structure
~ parental hierarchy is essential… So parents first align with parents
~ family life cycle very important!
~ first session very imp 4 stages = 1. Joining, 2. Problem, Each member shares viewpoint of problem 3. Interaction stage, assessment of family interactions 4. Goal setting - what has been tried and failed and the add small changes
~ brief but not super brief no limit to 10 sessions
~ goals to obtain symptom relief and shift structure of family
~ not as much a team approach

Contributors:

Jay Haley

Chloe Madanes

Key Terms & Primary Interventions

Aligning with Parental Generation:  
Directives:  
Incongruous Hierarchies:  
Ordeal Therapy:  
Presenting Symptom as Metaphor: 
Pretends to Have Symptom:  
Reframing:  
Unbalancing: