Seminar Discussion And Learning Journal

A therapist who works from a family system perspective takes on the role of teacher, model and consultant (Corey, 2017). The therapist is active in forming a relationship with the family by acknowledging and

The purpose of this paper is to review my professional identity as a Marriage and Family Therapist and to reflect on my developing beliefs within my selection of the counseling profession. My professional identity is beginning to be developed throughout my education with Liberty University. I will address the Marriage and Family Therapist professional counselor role and how this position differs from social workers, clinical psychologists, and professional counselors. By reviewing the differences in counseling positions, I will be able to express the differences from my previous experiences with pastoral counseling, and outline what my

Gladding, S. T. (2010). Family therapy: History, theory, and practice (5th ed.). Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson.

The nature of therapist-client relationship and understanding the therapist’s role is vital in making sure that the client’s rights are not jeopardized. The client must be willing to trust the therapist. The therapist can earn the trust of the client will confidentiality guidelines that are established by requiring informed consent. The therapist-client relationship is based on counseling approach as well as relationship with the client. The therapist’s role is to understand the client’s needs, help them get their needs met mentally, and to develop the proper plan that fits the client’s needs. The therapist must fully

Capuzzi and Stauffer (2015) state that assessment of the needs of marriage and family therapy go beyond just the instruments, in fact “Snyder, Heyman, and Haynes (2005) noted that more individuals reported seeking treatment for marital problems than any other single type of problem, with a majority of individuals surveyed identifying significant periods of turmoil within their marriage. Given the numbers of individuals experiencing marital issues at some point or another within their relationship, as well as the number of individuals seeking couples therapy, couple and family therapists must be familiar with instruments that may be used to assess specific problems and the quality of the relationship” (p. 89). Myers says that he likes to help people, but really wants to be able to remain their pastor and will counsel briefly with people, but if the trouble they are having is more extensive from his assessment, then he will refer them to one of the highly qualified counselors of the

I believe that maintaining the marriage should be the decision of the parties involved when a couple enters relationship counseling because of conflict and emotional distress. I would not want to impose my personal beliefs on my client’s. By having a conversation around what values each client has and what values they each have in common I would allow them a safe space to continue exploring what they want to do as a team. Counselors should not have a greater ethical responsibility to encourage couples to maintain the marriage when children are involved because every family is different and one should not assume that because they have children they have to stay together for the betterment of the family. One reason I would not want to do so is because not all families need to stay together to strive and I would not want to impose my belief that they should stay together when they could make the family dynamic work with whichever path they choose to take. What needs to be done is to have a conversation around the needs of their child and what they believe is the best

Certain modalities of therapeutic treatments are linked to ethical dilemmas as well; these modalities affect treatment outcomes as well. Dyadic therapists may misuse the intimate nature of the sessions by pushing their values on the client or clients, or by allowing therapy to extend beyond its efficiency. Confidentiality can be broken much easier with the group setting; therapists need to be highly guarded on this topic. (Amato, 2000)

Marriage and family therapists believe that the family patterns may affect an individual’s psychological and physical well being and therefore need to be part of therapy. During a therapy session even if only one person is being interviewed, the therapists focuses on a set of relationships that the person is embedded in. The entire family is involved in solving clients problems regardless of whether the issue in individual or family.

My first assumption of family therapy was to involve the parents and the individual that had the problem. This book explored further what it

There are two relationships present; one is a counselor/client and the other is familial. Being a family member of a client is problematic since there’s a bond based on family, emotion and love, which are all things that a counselor/client relationship cannot have. You’ve created an overlap in relationships, which can be confusing to the client (Miller,

The purpose of this paper is to examine the field of marriage and family counseling beginning with the history and development of the profession and its importance in the field of counseling. This paper will also evaluate five major themes relevant to Marriage and Family Therapy which include: roles of Marriage and Family Therapists; licensure requirements and examinations; methods of supervision; client advocacy; multiculturalism and diversity. The author will discuss significant aspects to the field of Marriage and Family Therapy such as MFT identity, function, and ethics of the profession. This paper will assess biblical values in relation to Marriage and Family Therapists and to the field

Graduates with a Marriage and Family Therapist are trained mental health professionals who have a family-oriented perspective and treatment approach.

It takes very special people to want to make a difference in people’s lives, to want to help them to be better. Some people seek to become counselors after overcoming a most important life challenge. The individuals that seek the profession of marriage and family therapy do not think of this work as a job or career, more typically a constellation of life experiences that demand explanation and a sense that others seek one out for assistance and emotional sustenance become driving forces leading one to counseling profession (An Invitation to Counseling Work).

Dual relationships and the ethical behavior that revolves around boundaries with clients present a multitude of very complicated situations to counselors where a clearly defined course of action is not always evident. Aside from no accord amongst mental health professionals and boundary issues being unavoidable at times, recognition and prediction of potential benefits or pitfalls correlated with dual relationships can prove to be troublesome as well (Remley & Herlihy, 2010). For most cases, it is best if an outline is used to discern when it is appropriate for a counselor to breach the client-counselor boundary.

Ethics and therapy are closely intertwined. It is important that healthcare professionals dealing in therapy adhere to strict professional standards and values that help define expectations and also prevent harm to those who seek therapy. Although the application of such values can sometimes be somewhat complicated when such therapists are dealing with individual clients, the complexity is even more heightened in the context of having multiple family members under therapy. Advancing conversations regarding values and marriage and family therapy is important to enable professionals grapple with the complexities of the topic as well as support their clients better.