A FAMILY SYSTEMS APPROACH TO CRISIS REACTIONS IN COLLEGE STUDENTS

This article presents a systemic orientation to the conceptualization and treatment of crisis reactions in college students. Crisis reactions are explained as an expression of and a "solution" to the dilemma of feeling the need to both achieve for, and remain overinvolved with, the family system. It is proposed that this dilemma occurs in the context of enmeshed systems in which unfulfilled aspirations from prior generations are transmitted to the student in crisis. Based on this conceptualization, a treatment approach that incorporates the use of strategic and structural interventions within a predominantly family of origin framework is provided.