Structural Family Theory ( Sft )

The family system is founded on the notions that for change to occur in the life of an individual, the therapist must understand and work with the family as a whole. In working with the family, the therapist can understand how the individual in counseling functions within his family system and how the client’s behaviors connect to other people in the family. This theory also holds the perception that symptoms are a set of family habits and patterns passed down by generation and not a result of a psychological problem or an inability to change (Corey, 2017). Furthermore, the family system theory holds the idea that when a change occurs everyone in the unit is affected by the change.

For this assignment, two different theoretical approaches will be discussed, Bowenian family therapy and structural family therapy, and they will be used individually to construct a treatment plan to help clients reach their goals. Within each treatment plan discussed, short-term and long-term goals of therapy will be established and the family’s presenting problems will be defined. Two techniques that will be assigned to help them reach their therapeutic goals and any expected outcome from using those techniques will be discussed.

Structural family therapy is associated with the work of Salvador Minuchin and is an evidence based therapy influenced by brief strategic and eco-systemic structural family therapy (Gerhart, 2014). Structural family therapists are active in the counseling sessions and will want to have all of the members of the family participate in the counseling sessions. The therapist is then able to map family structures in order to resolve relation problems between family members. The therapist will then make assessments and set goals to restructure the family interactions while focusing on family strengths.

Family systems therapy has some interesting comparisons to make with narrative therapy. They are each commonly used in work with families. According to Kelly, narrative theory adopts a postmodern social constructionist lens (p. 316). Family systems theory originates from organismic biology and early psychoanalytic, behaviorism, and learning theories (Andreae, 2011, p. 244-245). Although these are very different theories, each emphasizes environmental factors and influences on behavior. With family systems theory, all members in the family unit must coexist with each other and other environments such as work, school, church, institutions, etc. (p. 247).

Structural family therapy is a model of treatment based on systems theory that was developed by Salvador Minuchin. Structural family therapy features emphasis is mostly on structural change as the main goal of therapy; it pays close attention to the individual but also acknowledges the importance of family in the healing process of the individual.

One of the prominent aspects of SFT is that it can be implemented with a wide variety of client’s, presenting problems and can be patently integrated with other models to address different populations. Navarre (1998) states that SFT is a model that can be used to treat a wide variety of culturally diverse dysfunctional families. According to Navarre (1998) SFT is ideal when working with Chinese and vietnamese families due to the high levels of structure with clear generational boundaries and roles this culture holds. As stated by Navarre (1998) hispanic families such as Mexican-Americans and Cuban families hold characteristics that fit well with SFT; these cultures include extended family members, rely on authority/respect and discourage interactions outside of the family which adds stress to other family members. According to McNeil, Herschberger and Nedela (2013). SFT and community family therapy were integrated and said to be useful in addressing low-income families with adolescents involved in gangs. Although this model has not been adjusted to specifically address couples the same guidelines are used to treat couples effectively (Calapinto, 1991). The couples that are treated using SFT are looked at as another subsystem and their interactions with other family members.

For example, Tracey could explore what may occur if she is not allowed to see her male friend or interact with her sister a year from now. Using this technique will not only foster attention to Tracey’s discomforts but will allow the family to engage in a difficult communication that the social worker can best identify the current problematic support patterns and dynamics. My favorite, reframing, will allow the therapist to place a problem, Tracey’s unproductive behaviors around the house, into a different context so that problem can be more workable for Tracey and the foster family. For example, the therapist could reframe Tracey’s behaviors as intentions to connect with the family outside the house or have time outside of the house with clear boundaries. SFT will be effective because of it has clear and limited therapist’s role, which will ensure that the family and all members involved in the treatment are processing and doing most of the therapeutic work. Overall, providing therapeutic services to adolescents in the child welfare system requires exploring inherited family patterns and the new family’s boundaries, dynamics, hierarchies, rules and rituals. Thus, requiring the involvement of the whole family, biologically and foster families, to reduced, eliminate or examine the teen’s

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

Comparing Bowen’s family systems theory and Minuchin’s structural family theory we will outline several fundamental categories for analysis with Goldenberg & Goldenberg (2012) as our guide. We also contrast the history and theoretical orientation of both men to garner a deeper understanding of their theories. Finally we will consider integrating elements of both theories and how this makes us more effective practitioners.

Structural Family Therapy (SFT) was invented by Salvador Minuchin while working with lower-socioeconomic-level Black families (Gladding, 2015). A main premise of the theory is that “an individual’s

The Portokalos family appears to have a cultural component that attributes to their behavior and interactions in the system. The family comes from a collectivist perspective; therefore, separation and boundaries may be difficult to establish. Therefore, for the Portokalos family, to enact change, the treatment must work within a collectivist perspective. Utilizing elements of SFT for treatment may be appropriate because SFT has a natural inclination to structure and hierarchies, similar to collectivist societies. The purpose of this section is to address some of the SFT techniques, that I as a therapist, would utilize on the Portokalos family and conclude with a discussion on potential changes that can occur if the techniques are successful.

In the Structural Family Therapy model, therapy is not focused solely on the individual, but upon the person within the family system (Colapinto, 1982; Minuchin, 1974). The major idea behind viewing the family in this way is that “an individual’s symptoms are best understood when examined in the context of the family interactional patterns,” (Gladding, 1998, p. 210). In SFT, there are two basic assumptions: 1) families possess the skills to solve their own problems; and 2) family members usually are acting with good intentions, and as such, no

This therapy is best used by seasoned therapists. The outcome can differ depending on the therapist’s experience. According to a questionnaire study family functional therapy is proven to be an effective intervention for improving the psychosocial functioning of high-risk adolescents and their families (Marshall, Hamilton, & Cairns, 2016). The study used an added value score in evaluating the effectiveness of ‘FFT’. Despite the widespread adoption of manualized model‐driven approaches to family therapy, little is known about how therapists implement, and families experience the specific guiding practices involved in individual models.

therapy aims to improve family relations, and the family is encouraged to become a type of

I believe what make contextual therapy model approach different from some of the other MFT approaches is that the contextual family model is more of an influential approach. Also, the contextual family model deals with examining the intrapsychic and the interpersonal dynamic to raise the awareness and give insight to the client, to create new ways to behave and relate to others ( Gehart, 2014). Through the communication and processing, the therapist helps the client and family to govern different aspect of family structure, beliefs, power, and hierarchy. This model searches for intergenerational balance of justice and trustworthiness in family based on the concept of relational ethics and forgiveness in helping conflicted families to rebuild a level