Chronic Eating Disorders in Therapy: Clinical Stories Using Family Systems and Psychoanalytic Approaches

This paper presents three pieces of work, all focused around a person presenting with a long history of disordered eating patterns. One treatment was a couple therapy, one a family plus individual therapy and the third a purely individual therapy. The three different psychotherapies demonstrate an approach which uses psychoanalytic as well as family therapy thinking and techniques. The material is offered to show examples of the clinical practice within which individual and couple or family therapy constitute a range of psychotherapeutic responses to people and, in particular, to people with eating disorders. The context of the therapy is described in some detail as it accounts for many features of the treatments, for example, that they are justified within the institution by having been subject to empirical investigation. A metaphor, that of the medieval castle, is offered as an evocation of the experience of the person that is relevant in the practice of both individual and family therapy.     

Team Family Therapy Training: Conceptual and Pragmatic Considerations

This paper presents a family therapy training model that can be used to teach conceptual and executive skills to beginning therapists in community and academic settings. The model is based on the organization and philosophy of family therapy teams and the methods of live supervision. The goals, structure, and leadership of traditional family therapy teams are discussed and contrasted with the proposed team training model. Pragmatic details of the training program are described and advantages and disadvantages explored. Team leadership skills are categorized by context and future directions proposed.     

Family Therapy Techniques in Residential Settings: Family Sculptures and Reflecting Teams

Outcome data has shown that family therapy is highly effective in the treatment of many disorders including addiction, mood, and other issues. In working to make treatment as effective as possible, many residential treatment and outdoor behavioral healthcare (OBH) programs have adopted family therapy techniques for use in individual and peer group therapy settings. Some have also incorporated family members by inviting them to visit the residential setting and participate in treatment exercises. An article by Faddis and Bettmann (J Ther Sch Program 1(1): 57–69, 2006) outlines an example of this integrated approach to family sculptures and reflecting teams in a wilderness therapy setting for adolescents. This integrated technique has since come to be known as the four phase Familial Sculpting and Reflecting intervention. Most recently these methods have been expanded for use with young men ages 18–30 in an adventure wilderness therapy program. This article will examine the theoretical basis for both of these approaches, discuss the application of these techniques to residential OBH programs and review how these methods have been most recently adapted for use in another program.     

Emotionally Focused Family Therapy and Play Therapy Techniques

Emotionally Focused Family Therapy provides a framework for understanding children's behaviors in terms of attachment needs of comfort and support. However, when working with young children, play therapy is often developmentally preferred over “talk therapy.” By integrating play therapy techniques within an Emotionally Focused Family Therapy theoretical framework, therapists can help parents understand and meet their child's needs for affection and comfort. This article will discuss how play therapy techniques can be integrated with an Emotionally Focused Family Therapy theoretical framework for work with young children and their families.     

Family and Systems Therapy and Training in Portugal

The history of systemic family therapy in Portugal since its appearance until the present is discussed. Some data on systemic family therapists’ training is provided in the context of the Portuguese Society of Family Therapy and Academic Institutions. In Portugal, family therapy has been extended to various contexts, including medical and community services. Finally, future directions for family and systems therapy practice and training in Portugal are provided emphasizing the importance of family interventions as an important resource to empower families living with health chronic conditions. The Portuguese Family Therapy Society, every 2 years, organizes a scientific Iberian conference with Portuguese and Spanish speakers. This allows the exchange of clinical experience and research about family and systems theory.     

Family Unit Therapy and the Science and Typology of Family Systems

This paper attempts to review and evaluate the theoretical models used in family therapy. Speer's ( 20 ) critique is given special attention. This critique provides a starting point for a theoretical reformulation, supported by the author's ( 20 , 21 ) and other workers' ( 5 ) experimental findings. A theoretically derived, three-dimensional typology of family systems is described. This is based on the notion of a balance between morphostatic and morphogenic properties of the family system, as defined. Using a high and low value for each of the three dimensions, eight family types are isolated and each type is tied to therapeutic predictions. The proposed typology is discussed in relation to an inductively derived typology recently reported by Reiss ( 16 ) The need for further validation of the typological scheme is stressed, and its possible clinical applications are outlined.     

Teaching Family Systems Therapy to social Work Students

No abstract available for this article.