Evaluation Of An Ongoing Process

Marriage and Family Therapists (also known as MFTs) are relationship specialists. MFT focuses on the relationships that the client has and assists them to function as a stable individual and as a relationship parent. MFTs are trained assess to diagnose and treat individuals, couples, families and groups to achieve more adequate, satisfying and productive marriage, family and social adjustment (California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists). According to American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT) Marriage and Family Therapists are mental health professionals with a minimum of a master’s degree and two years supervised clinical experience. Marriage and Family Therapists are trained and licensed to independently diagnose and treat mental health and substance abuse problems. The role of a MFT is to help individuals and families to address issues and guide them in the situations and everyday life so that they can function within society. MFTs provide a wide variety of services for clients. Some services that MFT provide but are not limited to is diagnosis and treatment of mental and emotional disorders, marriage and relationship counseling, and pre-martial counseling. A few of common disorders treated by MFTs are depression, martial/family

Gehart, D. R., & Tuttle, A. R. (2003). Theory-based treatment planning for marriage and family therapists. Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole.

During treatment Cognitive-Behavioral Couple Therapy (CBCT) and Integrative Behavioral Couple Therapy (IBCT) will use feedback sessions to help assess how the couple is doing in a positive way (Gurman, 2008). Both CBCT and IBCT both use conflict and emotional expressions as avenues for couples to express their affection and understanding for one another (Gurman, 2008). Both CBCT and IBCT also have the same value system of creating a general closeness and intimacy between partners (Gurman, 2008). Regardless of the differences, the two therapies have the general

EFT is an attachment based research theory, that suggest that couples have strong need to stay connected (bond) to each other. As such, bonding is very important in marital relationships and if the bond is disappearing, then stressful and negative cycle pattern begins to emerge. Thus, the goal of EFT is to support couples walk through a process of healing (overcoming the negative patterns, rebuilding the connection again, and fortify the bond) (Goldenberg, Stanton, & Goldenberg, 2017). From the assessment that has carried out by the therapist it is clear that Tam and Lisa do not have what it takes to manage or settle conflicts without it escalating into something else. As such, the bonding between them is disappearing and it’s becoming stressful and disturbing to them and their children. Because Jimmy and Emma even though do not see their parent fight or disagree in the open but they can sense the disconnection between their parent and feel the tension whenever both of them where at home. More so, because of the negative pattern that has emerge as a result of lack of secure attachment, there is no more interactions between the couple and each others needs are not met. From the case conceptualization, and to decide what treatment plan should target or focus on the therapist will use the step-by-step treatment manual provided by Johnson and Greenberg (1995) as cited in (Goldenberg et al., 2017) for the therapy process:

The two therapy techniques that are being questioned this week are Emotional Focused Couple Therapy and Hope Focused Couple Therapy. Both techniques are effective in marital and couple therapy and both systems can be utilized effectively, however, I think comparable to other techniques the results depend on the people and the therapist. Hope focused therapy is centered around the brain and how couples perceive where their marriage is and where they want it to go. Watson (2017) states, “The approach is oriented around hopefulness and strengths, helping couples assess their strengths and create a positive narrative around them and their relationship to combat the discouragement and hopelessness that couples typically bring into counseling,”

A process evaluation is a tool utilized to identify the key components of intervention that are effective and under what conditions. Additionally it also evaluates the extent to which a program is being implemented as planned. A process evaluation can be broken down into six steps which are depicted in the diagram below. In order to engage stake holders the process must begin at the evaluation cycle. Stakeholders in regards to our program include those who are directly involved with program operations. This includes the staff utilized to procure supplies and equipment, those involved in the delivery of supplies equipment, those who distribute educational materials, those that perform diabetic testing and those that interact with the target

Couples and family therapy can be helpful in that it focuses on the family system and their involvement in both the support of recovery and the possible contribution to the person’s dependency. Working on how the family contributes to the overall health of the individual can make recovery more possible.

What you do depends on the couple members' status when they come in. The theory itself has been applied to variety of settings, from therapy with individual experts, to school prevention programs with parent-school-teen teams as the experts, to substance abuse treatment with abusers and sponsors. It's been used with psychiatric populations (Bozeman, 1999), couples (Lambert, 1998, and Zimmerman et al, 1997), elderly (Dahl, 2001), youth offenders (Seagram, 1997), school-aged children (Corcoran, 2000), and children with LD (Franklin et al, 2001), all with success.

According to Mertens and Wilson, program evaluation is a systematic method for collecting, analyzing, and using information to answer questions about projects, policies and programs, particularly about their effectiveness and efficiency. Stakeholders often want to know whether the programs they are funding and supporting are effective. While program evaluation first focuses on the effectiveness of the program, other important factors to take into consideration is cost of the program, improvements that could be made, outcomes of the program, and usefulness of the program. Evaluators help to answer these questions, and stakeholders have to work with the evaluators in order to come to the best conclusion about the effectiveness of a program so that all aspects are taken into consideration. Program evaluations can involve both quantitative and qualitative methods of research. People who do program evaluation come from many different backgrounds, such as sociology, psychology, economics, social work, and public policy. Some graduate schools also have specific training programs for program evaluation.

After reading two articles it was interesting to note the differences and similarities between the two intellectual and highly respected individuals within the field of Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT). Each makes many valid points yet with such opposing viewpoints. By taking a closer look at some specific areas one may see that though these men have different beliefs on how treatment should be conducted, there are also some parallels. Some of the topics will include the history and future of Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT), what they agree and disagree on along with the challenges each has dealt with. Finally the author of this paper will provide insight as to what this means for her as she begins her journey to becoming a Marriage and Family therapist.

This research study focuses on how Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) theory, process, and outcome are linked in counseling couples. Counseling couples can be more challenging than counseling individuals can, because there are two individuals whose feelings, thoughts, and behaviors must be considered in the process. This study refers to findings that suggest that between 25% and 30% of couples who participate in therapy do not experience marked improvement, and that even among those who do,

First are the goals that the client and therapist share for the treatment and to what extent they are cohesive in their combined expectations. Next the focus falls upon the tasks that are being accomplished or worked towards by everyone involved. Last we look to the strength and intimacy of the bonds that have been forged between the clients and therapist. The bond becomes increasing stronger when everyone involved feels, safe, invested, engaged and present with each other. The task of alliance forming takes on a entirely new and challenging form when counseling couples and families rather than an individual. In order for psychotherapy to be most effective strong alliances must be formed between everyone. Without the alliance there's little chance of change. This has been

Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy focusses on the feelings that impact behavior. The importance is on receptiveness of the couple to the emotional needs that arise when discussing their issues and finding solutions to the conflicts. A couple is helped to recognize and understand their connection and need for attachment. This therapy is centered on the theory that couples childhood experiences strongly influence the couple’s behavior in the relationship. In order for this therapy to be effective the professionals in the human service field must be competent in many facets. They must be able to use non-verbal and verbal skills of communication, use reflective techniques and ask closed and open ended questions. In addition the counselor

Emotionally focused therapy is designed to be short-term in structure. Developed principally by Dr. Susan Johnson, the main target of this type of therapy is couples and is focused on expressing emotions. The primary goal of emotionally focused therapy is to create a safe and long-lasting bond between romantic partners and family members while expanding and restructuring significant emotional responses. Partakers in emotionally focused therapy are emboldened to express their thoughts and emotions in a safe environment without fear of judgment. In this paper, we will discuss a therapy session between Sue Johnson and a couple, Leslie and Scott.

Process evaluation aims at understanding your program by understanding it more fully and whether it is functioning it as intended