DEVELOPING AN IDENTITY AS A FEMINIST FAMILY THERAPIST: IMPLICATIONS FOR TRAINING

Although feminists have profoundly influenced the field of family therapy, little has been written about the process by which these women came to identify themselves as feminist family therapists. This article reports the results of a qualitative research study that explored that process and suggests a model of feminist family therapy identity development. Implications for training programs are reveived.     

AAMFT Master Series tapes: an analysis of the inclusion of feminist principles into family therapy practice

Content analysis of 23 American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy Master Series tapes was used to determine how well feminist behaviors have been incorporated into "ideal" family therapy practice. Feminist behaviors were infrequent, being evident in fewer than 3% of time blocks in event sampling and 10 of 39 feminist behaviors of the Feminist Family Therapist Behavior Checklist. These eminent therapists most often dealt with empowerment of male clients and management of power differentials in the therapeutic relationship in a relatively feminist manner, but they tended to hold women responsible for family issues, endorsed traditional rather than egalitarian relationships, and overlooked how the social context affects families. Several of the therapists were blatantly sexist in their treatment of female clients, communicating disrespect of and pathologizing them. The few tapes portraying effective incorporation of feminist principles in family therapy indicate that a handful of behaviors are key to this approach.     

A feminist analysis of self-help bestsellers for improving relationships: a decade review

Self-help literature is pervasive and influential in the United States. A critical analysis of self-help books would help therapists to determine their utility for the therapeutic process and assist them in making reading recommendations to clients. In this study, a content analysis was conducted of the top 11 relationship self-help books on the New York Times Bestseller List over a period of 10 years (1988-1998) to determine the degree to which these books support a feminist approach to therapy. This study yielded three major findings. First, the number of feminist books, the number of nonfeminist books, and those falling in the middle across four components of feminist family therapy are about equal. However, the second major finding was that the top-selling books are more likely to be nonfeminist than feminist. The third finding is that most best-selling self-help books appear to have become less compatible with a feminist approach to relationships over time. This analysis encourages therapists to think critically about these best-selling books; it will also allow therapists to consider this methodology as a model for critically analyzing other books that they recommend to clients or use in their own professional development.     

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.     

The Power Equity Guide: attending to gender in family therapy

In the past two decades, feminist scholars have challenged the field of family therapy to incorporate the organizing principle of gender in its theory, practice, and training. In this paper, we introduce a training, research, and therapeutic tool that provides guidance for addressing or observing gender and power differentials in the practice of family therapy. As a training tool, the Power Equity Guide helps trainees to translate their theoretical understanding of feminist principles into specific behaviors in therapy. Researchers and supervisors can use the Power Equity Guide to evaluate the practice of gender-informed family therapy. We also provide specific suggestions for its use by trainers, supervisors, therapists, and researchers.     

Attachment-based family therapy: adherence and differentiation

This study examined the fidelity of attachment-based family therapy (ABFT) for depressed adolescents. Trained observers used the therapist behavior rating scale (3rd version) to code therapist behaviors in 45 sessions of ABFT and 45 sessions each from two empirically based treatments for adolescent substance abusers: multidimensional family therapy (MDFT) and cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). Results indicate that ABFT therapists employed essential ABFT interventions, such as focusing on vulnerable affect, highlighting attachment-related themes, and promoting adolescent-parent reattachment through in-session enactments. In accordance with the sequential nature of the treatment, these interventions were used more extensively during the early stage of treatment, when there is a greater focus on reattachment. ABFT was perfectly discriminable from CBT, with ABFT therapists using more restructuring and reattachment interventions and CBT therapists using more signature CBT interventions, such as cognitive monitoring and homework. ABFT was also discriminable from MDFT, with ABFT therapists placing a greater emphasis on reattachment. These results suggest that ABFT is a viable and differentiated treatment. Together with prior findings supporting its efficacy, ABFT should be considered a promising new approach for working with depressed adolescents and their families.     

MODES OF EXPRESSION IN FAMILY THERAPY: A PROCESS STUDY OF ROLES AND GENDER*

Twenty-two two-parent families with a referred adolescent were seen by 11 male and 11 female trainees in family therapy. Mothers, fathers, adolescents, and therapists were rated for verbal expression in affective, behavioral, and cognitive! attributional modes during the first session. Results clearly point to role and content difference in modes of expression. Of particular importance are differences by role which occured as a function of therapist gender. These differences suggest that therapist gender has an impact on family therapists' and family members' verbalizations in first sessions of family therapy.     

Stages of Change Theory in Family Therapy for Sibling Sexual Assault

Family therapy understands the benefits of therapeutically supported dialogue amongst family members when there are challenging themes and topics that need to be discussed. This paper is an attempt to explore ways that family therapists can work with family members who are thrust into therapy rather than ‘voluntarily’ signing up for it. It applies ideas from the drug and alcohol field such as Stages of Change theory and Motivational Interviewing. The paper explores how these ideas and approaches might help family therapists to formulate a concept of resistance and to make helpful dialogue more likely. They are applied to families experiencing sibling sexual assault, where they become involved with a legal response that necessitates a therapeutic intervention.     

SEXISM IN FAMILY THERAPY: DOES TRAINING IN GENDER MAKE A DIFFERENCE?

The purpose of this study was to investigate the clinical decision making of marriage and family therapists who had no training in gender compared to those who had such training, either through a separate course or by having gender issues integrated throughout the curriculum. Specifically, levels of feminism and sexism in the clinical assumptions and interventions of therapists were evaluated using clinical vignettes. Participants for this study included 150 beginning or entry-level therapists from marriage and family therapy training programs in academic settings. Of the 102 participants with some training in gender isues, 64% reported having received gender training from a faeminist perspective. contrary to expectations, a multivariate analyssis of variance revealed that training in gender issues alone did not significantly influence levels of feminism and sexism in clinical decision making. However, the levels of sexism in clinical interventions were significantly lower if therapists had received gender coursework from a feminist perspective, whether in a separate course or integrated throughout the curriculuim. These findings raise a question as to the wtility of teaching gender issues if what is taught and how it is taught are not also considered.     

TEACHING PROFESSIONAL WRITING TO FAMILY THERAPISTS: THREE APPROACHES

The authors present three educational approaches designed to demystify the writing process and to support better writing skills among family therapists. One framework is an academic course in professional writing, another is a writing seminar for family therapy and physician trainees within a medical school setting, and the third is a 2-hour continuing education writing workshop for family therapists. Each is replicable within a variety of settings.     

The Body Comes to Family Therapy: Utilising Research to Formulate Treatment Interventions with Somatising Children and their Families

Children and adolescents with functional somatic symptoms are challenging to understand and to treat. The challenges begin at the very outset of the intervention – with the neurological and psychiatric assessments. Patients presenting with functional somatic symptoms, as well as their families, frequently deny any emotional or family problem, and parents are often genuinely baffled as to why a child has suddenly become so ill and why no medical explanation is forthcoming. Families can be unwilling to engage in family assessment and therapy, and therapists may find that standard approaches to family therapy simply can end up alienating these families – the door to therapy is slammed shut. This article is the story of my struggle to understand somatising children and their families and to find a common language to enable us to co‐construct formulations, to agree to a treatment plan, and to work together towards a pathway to health. It is also about the role of research and how knowledge from different system levels – and most specifically about the body – may need to be integrated into the therapy to help bring about change.     

THE USE OF INTERACTIVE VIDEO TO DEMONSTRATE DIFFERENTIAL APPROACHES TO MARITAL AND FAMILY THERAPY

This article outlines the development of an interactive video system designed to demonstrate differential approaches to family therapy using identical therapy situations. The primary purpose of the project is to resolve some of the confusion many novice family therapists experience while being exposed to the numerous family therapy approaches. Technical aspects of the interactive video system are also outlined.     

Uniqueness of family therapists as family business systems consultants: a cross-disciplinary investigation

The purpose of this study is to address how the consulting approaches of family therapists working with family businesses differ from those of business consultants. The logic of analytic induction was used to analyze qualitative data from family business consultants with and without training in family therapy. Consultants were asked to respond to two vignettes: one emphasized primarily family system problems, whereas the other emphasized business problems with influencing issues at the family/business intersection. Both similarities and differences were found in reference to problem assessment, consulting goal orientation, intervention strategy focus, consultant role and function, and consulting setting preference between consultants with and without family therapy training. Results indicate that consultants of each discipline provide a unique perspective and expertise that allow them to successfully address the spectrum of issues that family firms face. Further, findings highlight the unique contribution of family therapists to an interdisciplinary consulting team.     

Cybersex and the E‐teen: What Marriage and Family Therapists Should Know

Adolescents who use the Internet regularly (the “e‐teen”) present a new set of challenges for marriage and family therapists. This article introduces marriage and family therapists to (a) the basic technological concepts and unique psychological characteristics of the Internet important in understanding and addressing adolescent online sexual behavior, (b) the appropriate developmental expectations for teens online, including risk‐taking behaviors and critical decision‐making skills, and (c) suggested strategies for assessment, prevention, and intervention when dealing with problematic online sexual behavior in adolescents. Marriage and family therapists cannot ignore the role the Internet plays in adolescent sexual development and its implication for the family. This article will serve as a primer for the marriage and family therapist when presented with adolescents who engage in online sexual behaviors.     

The Divide Between “Evidenced‐Based” Approaches and Practitioners of Traditional Theories of Family Therapy

Evidenced‐based approaches continue to grow in the field of family therapy. However, practicing family therapists do not always embrace these approaches. In this article, we explore factors contributing to practitioners' concerns with evidence‐based treatments and suggest a broader, more clinically palatable view of evidenced‐based treatment. We also suggest how family therapy researchers, practitioners, and educators might begin to close the researcher–clinician divide in the best interest of all concerned.     

A Comparison of Seven Family Therapy Approaches

Dimensions which should be part of a family theory are developed by drawing from ‘Integrative Family Therapy’, a theory incorporating the concepts, hypotheses, and techniques of American family therapists. The family theories of seven family therapists (Minuchin, Haley, Zuk, Friedman, Speck, Boszormenyi-Nagy, Rubinstein) are described and compared with one another. Their limitations are shown and thereby the characteristics of approaches of family therapy are indicated. Their contribution to a more encompassing ‘Integrative Family Theory’ is shown.     

Enhancing Family Therapy's Relationships With Research

The contention of this article is that systemic family therapy has much to gain from a realistic appraisal of its research base, which is as positive as possible. And that through such an appraisal we can find ways of developing the scope of family therapy to the benefit of the profession and thereby, of our clients. Family therapy will benefit if practitioners can present an informed view of research. As a preliminary approach to this objective, I review reasons why perceptions of family therapy underestimate its research base, and why therapists might resist involvement with research. The article then explores the reasons for regarding randomised controlled trials as a ‘gold standard’, and why they are not well fitted for the purpose of evaluating or developing a relational therapy. Next is a consideration of alternative approaches to research, including a consideration of what clients actually want from their therapy, then a brief review of the positive findings of outcome research. Greater emphasis on researching processes in therapy is proposed, and consideration of the ‘common factors’ debate is shown to support priorities that are specific to systemic therapies. The article concludes with suggestions for increasing the involvement of family therapists with research, both as consumers and as research practitioners.     

Is Family Therapy Including Children?

This paper presents a review of recent child therapy and family therapy texts and training courses in Australia. The aim was to determine the extent to which knowledge and information about child development and emotional and psychological problems in children and adolescents is included in the education and training of family therapists. The paper argues this is crucial to prevent the difficulties of young person's being ignored or exacerbated and discusses relevant ethical issues.