Systematic Family Therapy Flashcards
What are the foundations of the MRI approach?
1.Based on General Systems Theory (the whole is greater than the sum of its parts)
2.Cybernetics
feedback b/w systems
negative feedback will increase deviation from the norm
positive feedback will decrease behavior from the norm
3.Communications Theory
All sorts of behavior is a form of communication
communication has 2 aspects
a.report/content
b.depending who communicates will determine how you hear the content and what it will mean to you.
Important tenet of MRI approach
EARLY RESEARCH LED TO THE RECOGNITION THAT INDIVIDUAL SYMPTOMS REFLECT FAMILY SYSTEM DYSFUNCTION AND THESE SYMPTOMS ONLY PERSIST IF MAINTAINED BY THE FAMILY (there is a fuction to individual symptoms and they are maintained by attempted solutions of the family)
According to the MRI Strategic Theory, how do symptoms develop?
- the attempted solution (yelling at kids to stop doing something) is the problem
- Problems arise out of ordinairy life
- families seen as stuck in positive feedback loops
According to the MRI Strategic Theory, what is the goal of therapy?
- break the family’s repetitive but negatively self-perpetuating cycle
- 1st order change is a cosmetic fix and not likely to last (change behavior)
- 2nd order change sought to change systems structure and function (change the rules that govern behavior)
What is the MRI Approach to Practice?
- Identify positive feedback loops that maintain the problem
- Identify the rules that suppport these interactions
- Find a way to change the rules
- problems are a result of problematic boundaries, or coalitions but NO speculation about the function of the system; just focuses on behavior
What Interventions does MRI Therapy employ?
- prescribe the symptom (if a family has a lot of conflict at dinner, prescribe that they fight more)
- relabeling/reframing (if a child is acting out, reframe it to the parents to suggest that perhaps the child is protecting the parents from conflict)
- out-positioning (asking questions that unclock the sequence and help the family see the sequence that leads to the dysfunctional behavior)
- restraining (make slow, gradual changes)
What is the Theory of Brief Therapy/How do symptoms develop?
- Family solution is to deny a problem exists. Action is necessary but not taken
- Family solution is to solve something that isn’t really necessary to solve. Action is taken when it shouldn’t be. (Family looks for a solution to a problem that isn’t a problem).
- Family makes first order change but doesn’t come up with a solution to change the framework around the problem.
What is the Goal of Brief Therapy?
Resolution of presenting problem
What is the Role of the Therapist for Brief Therapy?
The therapist is seen as part of the family, not an outsider, and is responsible for change
What Clients Attend Therapy in the practice of Brief Therapy?
All those who are motivated to attend
What is the typical # of sessions for Brief Therapy?
10 sesstions
What sort of change does therapist seek in Brief Therapy
small progressive changes to stimulate hope in the therapist
What are the 3 focuses of Haley and Madanes’ Strategic Therapy
- Focus on SEQUENCES of behavior
- Focus on COMMUNICATION patterns
- Focus on present, not the past
What are unique aspects of the Haley & Madanes Strategic Therapy approach?
- importance of HIERARCHICAL structure
- symptoms play a FUNCTION in the family relationships
- lengthend duration of sequences (year to year)
- Stages of therapy can’t make big changes at once
According to Haley & Madanes, how do symptoms develop?
Haley: incongruous hierarchy
Madanes:language is a metaphor for problems in family behavior. “kid is a pain in the neck”
