A Curriculum for Graduate-Level Marriage and Family Therapy Education*

The Delphi technique of refining group opinion was used to develop a graduate level marriage and family therapy curriculum. Opinions were synthesized from a national panel of 20 AAMFT Approved Supervisors and 25 training directors of graduate-level marriage and family therapy programs. Three rounds of questionnaires were employed and 101 content areas met the criteria for inclusion into the final curriculum. Discussed are the similarities and differences of this curriculum and the current “model” AAMFT curriculum. It is hoped that the curriculum devised from this study will lead to the continued rethinking, refinement, and evolution of marriage and family therapy education.     

A SURVEY OF TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES FOR PREDOCTORAL PSYCHOLOGY INTERNS IN MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPY

The major clinical training experience for future psychologists is the one-year predoctoral internship. The purpose of this study was to determine the extent of marriage and family therapy training available to predoctoral psychology interns. All identifiable internship programs were surveyed to determine training opportunities for doctoral psychology students interested in marriage and family therapy training. A questionnaire was developed and mailed to all predoctoral internshipslisted in the 1983–84 Internship Programs in Professional Psychology (IPPP) and 18 additional sites known to offer marriage and family therapy training. Results indicate that relatively few psychology internships offer substantial training in marriage and family therapy. A listing of internships offering significant levels of training was developed.     

Human Sexuality Education in Marriage and Family Therapy Graduate Programs

Given the likelihood that marriage and family therapists will encounter clients with sexual concerns, it is important to know how graduate training programs are preparing future clinicians to work with this domain of life. Sixty‐nine marriage and family therapy (MFT) program directors completed an online survey to examine how sexual health education is integrated into graduate training programs. Findings indicate that while the majority of program directors value sexuality curriculum, and most programs require at least one course in this area, there are barriers to privileging sex topics in MFT graduate programs. Barriers include few MFT faculties with expertise in human sexuality and marginalized sexual health topics. Implications for training MFT graduate students and their work with future clients are discussed.     

Challenge and Urgency in Defining Doctoral Education in Marriage and Family Therapy: Valuing Complementary Models

In this overview, I comment on the strong theme of the need to define and improve the quality of doctoral education in marriage and family therapy that pervades the three essays. Deficits in research training are the central concern, although the essayists take different perspectives on the nature of the research training needed. The different perspectives can be understood in terms of three different models of doctoral education. The institutional model focuses on professional training with little financial support for students and lower expectations for faculty research. The community of scholars model emphasizes a balance of research and practice with students required to attend full-time and financial support provided. Research is a mix of faculty- and student-driven and is often focused on professional issues. The star researcher model often held out as the ideal, although not yet represented in marital and family therapy (MFT), emphasizes faculty externally funded programmatic research with students working on and supported by faculty grant funding. The value and role of all three models in MFT doctoral education are described and discussed.     

The Digital Divide: Couple and Family Therapy Programs’ Integration of Teletherapy Training and Education

The mental health field is increasingly integrating and growing a teletherapy presence, and couple and family therapists are uniquely situated to offer these services based on our history of innovative approaches to therapeutic services. To do so successfully, careful consideration of training and education must occur. To evaluate current teletherapy training and education opportunities of COAMFTE accredited couple, marriage, and family therapy programs, an inductive qualitative content analysis was conducted on the responses of 95 faculty at COAMFTE accredited programs. Findings indicate that more than two thirds of the participants were in favor of teletherapy integration in training programs; however, most programs currently do not offer such opportunities. Barriers that prevent such integration were highlighted as well as existing concerns to training graduate students in teletherapy. Implications for training programs, policies, and regulations are discussed.     

From Private Practice to Academia: Integrating social and political advocacy into every MFT Identity

While advocacy was essential to establishing the field of marriage and family therapy, at present a social and political advocacy skill set is lacking for the typical marriage and family therapist (MFT). This article reviews the importance of being active in social and political advocacy and highlights the attributes of MFTs’ professional identity that uniquely position us for success in these areas. Other mental health fields’ pedagogical approaches to training and education are explored, and recommendations are made for how MFTs can begin to increase their competency in advocacy. Ideas for incorporating advocacy into a professional identity are presented for MFTs at every level of professional experience. Finally, the concept self‐of‐the‐advocate is introduced and discussed.     

Master'S degree programs in marital and family therapy: an evaluation of admission and program requirements*

Current legal and professional guidelines related to master's-level training programs in marriage and family therapy are reviewed. The admission and program requirements of 50 California-based programs are then evaluated in light of these standards. The data indicate that the reality of these training programs often departs significantly from the ideals and suggested standards of the field. It is recommended that the various national and state organizations interested in promoting quality marriage and family training programs collaborate with program representatives to establish more explicit and rigorous expectations for master's-level training.     

Competency-Based Training: Objective Structured Clinical Exercises (OSCE) in Marriage and Family Therapy

The field of marriage and family therapy (MFT) has recently engaged in the process of defining core competencies for the profession. Many MFT training programs are adapting their curriculum to develop more competency-based training strategies. The Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) is widely used in the medical profession to assess clinical competence. These examinations involve using simulated clinical situations as a tool in conducting summative evaluations of trainee competence. This article describes an adaptation of the OSCE procedures for competency-based training of MFT students. Instead of using the procedures as a summative examination as is typical in medical education, this article proposes how to use them as formative exercises in the development of student competence. The development of the OSCE is discussed, including “blueprinting,” focused competencies, procedures, and feedback protocols. The article concludes with suggestions of how to continue the development of the OSCE for evaluation in MFT education.     

Measuring the Effect of Sexual Health Education Training in Professionals: Structure of the Sexual Health Education for Professionals Scale (SHEPS) Among Marriage and Family Therapy Graduate Students

Marriage and family therapists and sexual health therapists are likely to receive training in graduate school that prepares them to encounter sexual concerns among clients, but there are few standard ways to assess the efficacy of this training. The Sexual Health Education for Professionals Scale (SHEPS) was developed to address this deficit. In this preliminary study, 163 marriage and family therapy graduate students completed the SHEPS prior to starting a graduate course in assessing and treating sexual concerns. Exploratory factor analyses indicate that the SHEPS subscales have good psychometric properties. The Skills and Knowledge subscales have factors labeled Typical Clients, Special Clients, Conservative Clients, and Ethically Complicated Clients. The Attitudes subscale had factors called General Sexual Attitudes, Valuing Sexual Health Training, Open to Providing Sexual Help, and Conservatism. This new instrument may be used to assess education and training of sexual health and marriage and family therapists. Larger sample sizes and longitudinal studies are needed in future.     

Most and Least Meaningful Learning Experiences in Marriage and Family Therapy Education

Marriage and family therapy educators increasingly emphasize training competencies. What we know less about is what makes family therapy education meaningful to marriage and family therapy (MFT) graduate students and what does not. In this study, through an Internet survey, we explored the most and least meaningful learning experiences of 68 MFT graduate students and recent graduates of Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education—accredited programs. We used thematic analysis to identify and illustrate resulting themes, which included the importance of experiential and personal components to learning, the professor‐student alliance, tying theory to practice, and the experiences of students with their clients, among others. We discuss the implications of these findings to support family therapy education and offer tentative suggestions for formative discussions both within and across programs. Video Abstract is found in the online version of the article .     

Use of standardized assessment instruments in couple therapy: the role of attitudes and professional factors

The study examined therapeutic approach, professional affiliation, training, seniority, and work setting as predictors of attitudes toward standardized instruments and their use in couple therapy. Data were gathered from 163 certified marriage and family therapists in Israel. Results showed that 27.6% of marital therapists used standardized instruments for assessment. More positive attitudes toward standardized instruments were associated with the extent of training in their use and with a structural-strategic approach. Logistic regression analysis indicated that positive attitudes, training, and work setting best predict the application of standardized assessment instruments. Reasons for the relative lack of use of standardized assessment instruments are discussed. It is recommended that more training in assessment instruments be included in marriage and family therapy training.     

Career Aspirations and Perceived Level of Preparedness Among Marriage and Family Therapy Doctoral Students

The authors conducted a survey of marriage and family therapy (MFT) doctoral students in programs accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE). MFT doctoral students ( N  = 82) from across the United States responded to a web-based survey that focused on career aspirations, training opportunities, and the level of preparedness they experienced during their doctoral education. Results of this survey indicated that students felt they were well prepared for many aspects of their chosen career path. Some respondents desired more training to prepare them for careers in academia. More men than women indicated a career in academia as their primary career aspiration. While most of the respondents perceived that their internship experiences were beneficial, some expressed the desire for more opportunities to supervise master's-level students, to write grants, and to teach graduate-level MFT courses. The authors conclude with a discussion of how these findings may influence the development of core competencies specific to doctoral education in MFT.     

DOES ACADEMIC TRAINING BACKGROUND MAKE A DIFFERENCE AMONG PRACTICING MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPISTS?

Using a national sample of practicing marriage and family therapists (MFTs) and their clients, this study investigated whether academic training background is associated with differences in pracice patterns and client outcomes. Clinical members of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy with academic training in psychology, social work, counseling, and marriage and family therapy were compared on a wide range of clinical practice variables, and their clients were surveyed about thier satisfaction and outcomes. Results showed highly similar practice patterns and client outcomes across all four disciplinary groups. Although the findings showed little evidence for the uniqueness of academic marriage and family therapy training among experienced MFTs, they also refute the notion that therapists trained in MFT degree programs practice in unusual or inferior ways compared to MFTs trained originally in other mental health disciplines.     

A graduate course in marriage and family enrichment

Legislation aimed at decreasing the divorce rate and the resurgence of interest in marriage and family enrichment have propelled educators to consider how well they are training new therapists in the preventive approaches to therapy. In this article, we present a graduate course to educate students about the enrichment movement and skill- and competency-based approaches to family intervention. We provide a general outline for teaching the course as well as specific resources and guidelines that can be of value to all marriage and family therapy practitioners.     

A FAMILY THERAPY INTERNSHIP IN A MULTIDISCIPLINARY HEALTHCARE SETTING: TRAINEES' AND SUPERVISOR'S REFLECTIONS

Family therapy doctoral students from American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy-accredited programs are required to complete a full-time clinical internship. The literature provides little information about these internship experiences. Two doctoral-level marriage and family therapists summarize their professional and personal experiences in their internships located within a multidisciplinary healthcare setting. In addition, their supervisor reports on her experiences working with marriage and family therapy doctoral interns. We hope that this case report will stimulate all interns and their supervisors to provide feedback to their internship sites and graduate programs about their clinical training and the extent to which the programs prepared them for their marriage and family therapy careers in the larger health and mental health community.     

Is relationship and marriage education relevant and appropriate to child welfare?

Child welfare professionals (CWPs) have historically been ignored as a potential delivery system of relationship and marriage education (RME). Based on a sample of 1015 CWPs from two states, the current study shows that CWPs believe promoting healthy couple and marital relationships is relevant to the families they serve and their work, and that they are open to receiving RME training. Results from structural equation modeling indicate that CWPs' beliefs about the relevancy and appropriateness of RME may be influenced by their current RME ability and comfort level, their beliefs about the state of marriage and the prevalence of couples in their current caseload of families they serve. Implications related to promoting RME within child welfare and engaging CWPs in RME training are discussed.     

Relationship education research: current status and future directions

The overarching aim of this article is to review the research on relationship education programs and approaches that has been published or accepted for publication since the last review article in 2003. This article provides a critical overview of the relationship education field and sets an agenda for research and practice for the next decade. A theme weaved throughout the article is the ways in which relationship education is similar and different from couples therapy, and we conclude that there can be a synergistic, healthy marriage between the two. We then provide recommendations for future directions for research in the relationship education field. Finally, the coauthors comment on our experiences in both the relationship education field and the couples therapy field as both researchers and interventionists.     

The Doctoral Education of Professional Marriage and Family Therapists

The professional practice of marriage and family therapy (MFT) scholarship is regulated at the master’s level in the United States. Consequently, contemporary curricular issues have largely been focused on what is to be achieved within the master’s degree, with an emphasis on clinical practice. We consider here what value may and should be added through the doctoral degree in marriage and family therapy. Doctoral programs are the developmental stage wherein we should seek to transmit the specialized knowledge and skills germane to MFT scholarship and practice in diverse settings, e.g., clinical and research intensive university, family law, health care, child development and education, child welfare, juvenile justice, faith based, and business. However, underlying this specialty education are three transcendental goals: sophistication of family systems scholarship, socialization into the profession of MFT, and cultivation of professional maturity.     

Relational safety and liberating training spaces: an application with a focus on sexual orientation issues

This article describes and discusses a teaching case of a clinical training situation involving a gay marriage and family therapy student working with a same-sex affectional couple. The conceptual pillars of this teaching case, relational safety and liberating spaces, are advanced as illustrations of how the student developed his voice in the training process. Pivotal moments in this process are discussed, as are implications for training and personal and professional growth.