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Methodology |
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It uses a range of counseling and other techniques including:
The basic theory of classical systemic family therapy was derived mainly from systems theory and cybernetics, and secondarily from behavioral therapy and cognitive psychotherapy, although most of the founders of the field had psychoanalytic backgrounds. More recent developments have come from feminist, postmodernist, narrative, psychodynamic and attachment theories Important schools of family therapy include structural family therapy, strategic family therapy, a range of cognitive and behavioral approaches, constructivist (eg, Milan systems, post-systems/collaborative/conversational, reflective), solution-focused therapy, psychodynamic, object relations, intergenerational (Bowen systems theory, Contextual therapy), EFT (emotionally focused therapy), and experiential therapy. Multicultural, intercultural, and integrative approaches are being developed. Most practitioners claim to be "eclectic", using techniques from several areas, depending upon their own inclinations and/or the needs of the client(s). The number of sessions depends on the situation, but the average is 5-20 sessions. A family therapist usually meets several members of the family at the same time; (conjoint family therapy is used in the approach of Virginia Satir and others.) This has the advantage of making differences between the ways family members perceive mutual relations as well as interaction patterns in the session apparent both for the therapist and the family. These patterns frequently mirror habitual interaction patterns at home, even though the therapist is now incorporated into the family system. Therapy interventions usually focus on relationship patterns rather than on analyzing impulses of the unconscious mind or early childhood trauma of individuals as a Freudian therapist would do - although some schools of family therapy, for example psychodynamic and intergenerational, do consider such individual and historical factors. Family therapy is really a way of thinking, an epistemology rather than about how many people sit in the room with the therapist. Family therapists are relational therapists; they are generally more interested in what goes between people rather than in people. Depending on circumstances, a therapist may point out to the family interaction patterns that the family might have not noticed; or suggest different ways of responding to other family members. These changes in the way of responding may then trigger repercussions in the whole system, leading to a more satisfactory systemic state; it should be noted though, that some family therapists - in particular those that identify as psychodynamic, object relations, intergenerational, EFT, or experiential family therapists - tend to be as interested in individuals as in systems. A novel development in the field of couples therapy in particular,
has involved the introduction of insights gained from affective
neuroscience and psychopharmacology into clinical practice. There
has been interest in use of the so-called love hormone – oxytocin
– during therapy sessions, although this is still largely experimental
and somewhat controversial |
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