Structural Family Theory Paper

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) has a few interventions within the theoretical model that I could see myself using with clients (families) from diverse backgrounds with diverse presenting problems. I am in agreement with the way this model looks at the different types of families and the types of issues they present with such as the patterns common to troubled families; some being "enmeshed," chaotic and tightly interconnected, while others are "disengaged," isolated and seemingly unrelated. This model also helped me understand that families are structured in "subsystems" with "boundaries," their members not seeing these complexities and problems that are going on

According to Nichols and Davis (2017), family structure refers to the way a family is organized into subsystems (Nichols & Davis, 2017). The movie Ordinary People, during the first interaction between Beth and Calvin, we see there is a disconnect within the

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.

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

It comes down to focusing on what is the cause of the problem and what needs to be done to resolve it. Some assumptions that are related to this theory can include families normally related to one another in “patterned ways that are observable and predictable” (Linblad-Goldberg & Northey, 2013), most families have rules that each must follow and roles they are to play in the family unit, when they get off balance then dysfunction can and normally does occur. It is important that families have boundaries which include both inside and outside of the family. Families also have subsystems which can be based on either generation or genders.

Reconstruction and change are essential for the family system to facilitate the homeostatic process, as explained by the fourth principle of the theory (Minuchin, 1985). It includes family questioning current methods, evaluating and developing potential arrangements. While earlier principles analyse the wholeness of the family system, the fifth principle explains that families can be examined in various segments such as the parent-children subsystem, sibling subsystem and spousal subsystem (Minuchin, 1985). Within the family, relationships between members are formed, and the interactions between each subsystem are regulated by unspoken rules and arrangements, and this is the final principle of family systems theory (Minuchin, 1985). Each subsystem operates independently, and it may encounter changes in the relationship due to various determinants.

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 focuses on encouraging proactive healthy change within the family, with an emphasis on structure, subsystems, and boundaries. Family Structure is invisible set of rules that organize the ways family members relate to each other. Structure resists change. The therapist will essentially be a change agent to facilitate this reorganization (Minuchin,

Family therapy is a form of psychotherapy employed to assist members of a family in improving communication systems, conflict resolution, and to help the family to deal with certain problems that manifest in the behavior of members. In most cases, deviance in a family member is an indication of underlying family dysfunctions. This paper looks the counselling procedure that can be applied to help the Kline family solve their problems. It answers certain questions including those of the expected challenges during therapy and ways of dealing with the challenges.

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

It is important to note that it is the right type of relationships, rather than a large quantity of relationships which are the goal of relational therapy. An integration of ideas from structural family therapy helps us see that relationships can also be the source of many problems. In families, if there are imbalances or structural disorganization, the relationships are not able to

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.

Contextual family therapy model is a transgenerational mode that is based on the assumption that a family system behavioral patterns are mostly developed from one generation to another generation. This particular model is more of a distinct type model that is considered to be closely compared or associated to the psychoanalytic family model (Gehart, 2014). The major assumption for change in the contextual approach model, is to help all in the family system to establish a greater balance in each relationship through the intervention of fairness, trust, loyalty, and mutual support. These interventions is considered to be the focal point for the contextual family therapy model (Gangamma, Bartle-Haring &

Family is something that plays a tremendous role in our life. Even though the structure of families has changed over the years, it is important to acknowledge that there many families out there whether they are traditional families, nuclear family, stepfamilies or others which tend to have different types of problems in their families. Therefore, many families attempt to go to family therapy in order for them to obtain help in solving the different types of issues they might have at home. As stated in the book Family Therapy by Michael P. Nichols (2013), “The power of family therapy derives from bringing parents and children together to transform their interaction… What keeps people stuck in their inability to see their own participation in the problems that plague them. With eyes fixed firmly on what recalcitrant others are doing, it’s hard for most people to see the patterns that bind them together. The family therapist’s job is to give them a wake-up call” (2013).