Transcultural Therapy with Aboriginal Families: Working with the Belief System*

A framework for conducting transcultural therapy with families is considered. This emphasises the importance of developing cultural sensitivity, competence, and the role of cultural consultants. The paper then applies this framework to Aboriginal families. The author explores the indigenous belief system about health and healing, demonstrating the importance of body, land and spirit to the Aboriginal people. Continuity and change in belief and health practices are then traced from the traditional setting to the mission or reserve and urban setting. A case study demonstrates how to work with this belief system and provides practical recommendations for family therapists. On a broader level the paper demonstrates the compatibility of systemic thinking to the Aboriginal world view and draws from the literature of transcultural psychiatry, geography, medical anthropology and family therapy.     

When Watching A Sunset Can Help A Relationship Dawn Anew: Nature‐Guided Therapy For Couples And Families

Based on the case of a couple in conflict who were available for only two sessions of Therapy, this article explores the application of a brief, integrative ecopsychology, Nature‐Guided Therapy, in relationship work. It discusses what nature‐guided Therapy is, where it fits in the spectrum of Therapypeutic interventions, and how it can be applied. As there is a paucity of literature linking the growing field of ecoTherapy with family and couple Therapy, the relevance of nature‐guided approaches is discussed. Its goal goes beyond problem resolution, aiming at the creation of positive, effective and joyful relationships. Step‐by‐step procedures for applying nature‐guided interventions in family and couple work are presented.     

The Hungry‐for‐Attention Metaphor: Integrating Narrative and Behavioural Therapy for Families With Attention Seeking Children

Many families come to treatment with concerns about attention‐seeking children. This paper examines the dominant socio‐cultural and biological influences on individual parent and child narratives about attention‐seeking behaviour and explores the misalignment between the two. A case study illustrates the reconstruction of the dominant problem‐saturated story through the hungry‐for‐attention metaphor. Finally, the author proposes an integrative approach to combining narrative practices with behavioural interventions for families and professional caregivers.     

Part II: Multisystemic Therapy: Addressing Racial Disparity and Its Effectiveness With Families From Diverse Racial and Ethnic Backgrounds

Disparities in health and mental health care delivered to racial and ethnic minorities became a focus of national policy following reports of the Institute of Medicine (IOM, 2002 Institute of Medicine . ( 2002 ). Unequal treatment: Confronting racial and ethnic disparities in health care . Washington , DC : National Academies Press . [Google Scholar]) and the Surgeon General (USDHHS, 2001). The Surgeon General (USDHHS, 2001) reported racial and ethnic minorities experience disparities in availability and quality of mental health services compared to whites. Two challenges that intersect and compound each other are the disproportionately high numbers of African American children in child welfare with unmet mental health needs remaining in their homes or placed in relative's homes after a substantiation of child maltreatment (USDHHS, 2002 Institute of Medicine . ( 2002 ). Unequal treatment: Confronting racial and ethnic disparities in health care . Washington , DC : National Academies Press . [Google Scholar]) and the lack of culturally appropriate, effective home-based treatments available to them. This study compared outcomes for the youth who received Multisystemic Therapy (MST) controlling for the impact of race and ethnicity. The findings provide further evidence for child welfare practitioners to consider when working with children and families from diverse populations in decision-making.     

Mapping Social Capital: A Critical Contextual Approach For Working With Low-Status Families

Promoting justice in therapeutic work with families demands an analysis of contextual factors such as race, ethnicity, gender, and social class in relationship to societal systems of power, privilege, and oppression. A broad understanding of these dynamics, however, is inadequate to inform our work with families whose social capital severely limits available life choices, social influence, and material resources. In this article, we describe working from a critical contextual perspective to consider how families gain and/or lose social capital through participation in multiple contexts. We introduce a technique for mapping social capitol within and across multiple systems as well as suggestions for interventions aimed at increasing the social well-being of low-status families. These include considering the dynamics of boundary crossing, recognizing and optimizing resistance to oppressive dynamics, finding ways to limit constraints and optimize opportunities, and developing webs of allies to support family functioning and access to resources. We offer the example of 13-year-old Pepe as a case in point.     

Promoting Fathers' Engagement With Children: Preventive Interventions for Low‐Income Families

Few programs to enhance fathers' engagement with children have been systematically evaluated, especially for low‐income minority populations. In this study, 289 couples from primarily low‐income Mexican American and European American families were randomly assigned to one of three conditions and followed for 18 months: 16‐week groups for fathers, 16‐week groups for couples, or a 1‐time informational meeting. Compared with families in the low‐dose comparison condition, intervention families showed positive effects on fathers' engagement with their children, couple relationship quality, and children's problem behaviors. Participants in couples' groups showed more consistent, longer term positive effects than those in fathers‐only groups. Intervention effects were similar across family structures, income levels, and ethnicities. Implications of the results for current family policy debates are discussed.     

Psychological Testing in Child Custody Evaluations With Ethnically Diverse Families: Ethical Concerns and Practice Recommendations

Given increasing ethnic diversity of divorcing families, it is more important than ever for family court evaluators to understand the ethical concerns and principles underlying the use of psychological testing with ethnic family members. Major professional organizations have promulgated the guidelines of child custody evaluation with an imperative to consider cultural factors in the evaluation. However, there is a paucity of literature that addresses ethnicity and psychological testing in child custody evaluations. This article addresses three major ethical domains: (a) competence, (b) test fairness, and (c) test interpretation when psychological tests are used. Practice recommendations provide guidelines to ensure ethical standards and competence in using psychological testing with ethnically diverse families in child custody and other family court evaluations.     

The Family Safety Model: A Comprehensive Strategy For Working With Domestic Violence

There has been continuous debate about the viability, efficacy and appropriateness of providing services to perpetrators and couples where domestic violence is the presenting problem in therapy. This paper argues that within a comprehensive and integrated model of service provision that encompasses all family members, it can be appropriate and effective to incorporate these service options if screening, monitoring and service models are carefully selected and provided in a context of agency safety and support.     

Coping With Overload and Stress: Men and Women in Dual‐Earner Families

This study tested gender differences in a model positing relationships between work and family demands, overload, 4 coping mechanisms, and stress. The coping mechanisms were hypothesized to moderate the relationship between overload and stress. The sample consisted of 1,404 men and 1,623 women in dual‐earner families. Respondents relied on 2 coping strategies: scaling back and restructuring family roles. Men were more likely than women to respond to overload by scaling back and less likely to respond by work‐role restructuring. Coping by family‐role restructuring moderated the relationship between role overload and stress for both groups; however, the gender difference was not significant. Coping by work‐role restructuring moderated the relationship between overload and stress only for men.     

Internal Migration of Ethno‐national Minorities: The Case of Arabs in Israel

Recent scholarship emphasizes differences among ethnic groups' internal migration patterns. Yet, with few exceptions, research has focused on the Anglo‐American world, neglecting experiences from other regions. This paper is part of a larger research project that studies mobility among the Arab minority in Israel and its driving forces. In this paper we examine patterns of internal migration by analysing the propensity to migrate as well as migrants' individual and social characteristics. First, we survey the theoretical backdrop that is suggested by recent geographic literature on internal migration among ethnic and racial minorities, including native groups. Second, we contextualize the group studied, providing necessary background information on the political, socio‐economic and demographic conditions of Arabs in Israel. We briefly discuss attributes that are – or have been – potential hindering factors to Arab mobility in the Jewish state. Finally, we analyse 1995 national census data at the micro scale and provide a basis for future explanations of the phenomenon. We conclude by outlying some future directions in the study of internal migration of minorities in Israel.     

No Small Change: Process‐Oriented Play Therapy For Children of Separating Parents

This article looks at a process‐oriented play therapy for children adversely affected by parental separation. Process‐oriented play therapy is a therapeutic method that involves the therapist directly entering the ‘world of play’ with the child, by amplifying various modes of expression and helping underlying meaning to emerge, in order to help children access aspects of their life they feel they have no say in. One particular case has been used as an example, involving ‘Jim’ (pseudonym) and his mother, who attended the play therapy session.     

Architecture: A Template For Generating Design And Construction Possibilities For Therapy

The architectural processes of design and construction can be adapted to the design and construct of human solutions. Architecture provides a generative metaphor for therapy as well as a coherent and comprehensive conceptualisation for developing an integrated therapeutic eclecticism. The notion of ‘therapy as architecture’ is general enough to encompass all models of therapy. However, the paper confines its application of the architectural metaphor to the field of family therapy, and in particular to the briefer approaches to family therapy. Also, the paper demonstrates the utility of this architectural template for providing specific guidance on how to design and construct a therapeutic form in keeping with the client's brief and context. A case vignette illustrates how an architectural therapy works.     

How to Deal With Moral Tales: Constructions and Strategies of Single‐Parent Families

This study explored how normative understandings based on the nuclear family ideology are linked to constructions of single‐parent families and sheds light on the strategies single parents and their children adopt in dealing with negative accounts. Guided by social constructionist and configurational approaches, the in‐depth analysis is based on an Austrian qualitative study, comprising interviews with 50 ten‐year‐old children and their 71 parents, living in nuclear, reconstituted, and single‐parent families. The results showed that single‐parent families are constructed predominantly in terms of deficits and disadvantages, with the nuclear family serving as an ideological code along the dimensions of normalcy, complementarity, and stability. To deal with negative accounts, single parents and their children use three basic types of strategy: (a) imitation, (b) compensation, and (c) delimitation.     

Attachment‐Based Family Therapy With a 13‐Year‐Old Girl Presenting With High Risk for Suicide

This article describes the application of Attachment‐Based Family Therapy (ABFT) to the treatment of a 13‐year‐old female adolescent presenting with high risk of suicide, complicated by a history of depression and sexual trauma. The article begins with an overview of ABFT, including (a) how attachment theory guides treatment; (b) the structure of the clinical model; and (c) the data that provide empirical support. A case example is then presented that exemplifies the primary clinical procedures used to reach therapeutic goals in ABFT, including attachment repair and autonomy/competence promotion. Weekly changes in suicide ideation and depression scores are presented. The article concludes with a discussion about implications for family‐based treatment of suicidal youth.     

Cohesion,Satisfaction With Family Bonds,and Emotional Well‐Being in Families With Adolescents

The present paper investigated whether higher cohesion and satisfaction with family bonds were associated with the daily experience of emotional well‐being in varying social circumstances. Using a sample of school‐age adolescents (N = 95) and both their parents, data were gathered daily over 1 week using a diary approach in addition to self‐report instruments. Multilevel analyses revealed higher cohesion to be associated with well‐being in fathers and adolescents, but not in mothers. Parents also reported higher well‐being when with friends or colleagues than when alone. Moreover, fathers who scored higher on cohesion reported higher well‐being when with family members than when alone, whereas adolescents who scored higher on satisfaction with bonds reported lower well‐being when with peers or siblings than when alone.     

Play Therapy: A Paradigm for Work with Families*

The dream-like, open-ended process of play therapy has much in common with the family therapy style of the authors. This paper provides a partial list of similarities between play therapy and family therapy. It reviews methods for using play with families and considers the question of indications and contraindications for play therapy with families. Clinical examples are utilized to illustrate throughout the paper.     

Seeking to Engage ‘Hard‐to‐Reach’ Families: Towards a Transferable Model of Intervention

This paper describes an exploratory evaluation of the Peers Early Education Partnership ‘Room to Play’, an innovative and experimental ‘drop‐in’ service seeking to attract and engage ‘hard‐to‐reach’ families in one of the most deprived areas of a Midlands city. Located in a shop unit of a busy community shopping centre, it offers play and learning activities for children, and provides opportunities for parents to talk to practitioners in a neutral and supportive environment. Through a mixed methods design, the authors attempted to document the core components of a potential transferable model of intervention, within challenging research constraints.     

Amplifying Deviations in Family Interactions: Guidelines For Trainees in Post‐Milan Family Therapy

Amplifying deviations in family interactions is a critical skill in family therapy, and one that can be implemented following the first reflecting team intervention. This paper will provide trainees with a series of practical guidelines for amplifying deviations, derived from an integration of several models of family therapy. Solution‐focused and narrative questions are employed systemically, with the aim of magnifying virtuous, rather than vicious cycles of interaction. A theoretical rationale for deviation amplifying and a brief case vignette will also be presented.