The Age of Accountability:* The Next Phase for Family Therapy

Family therapy is in a transition phase from its initial period of growth and expansion on theory and techniques to a stage of evaluation and empirical research. In this phase termed here the age of accountability, the field is being called to account for itself by various groups of interested persons. This paper examines the specific groups who are seeking information and discusses the kind of questions they are directly asking. Failure to acknowledge this next step in the development of family therapy could have serious implications.