...Structural family therapy (SFT) is a method of psychotherapy developed by Salvador Minuchin which addresses problems in functioning within a family. Structural Family Therapists strive to enter, or "join", the family system in therapy in order to understand the invisible rules which govern its functioning, map the relationships between family members or between subsets of the family, and ultimately disrupt dysfunctional relationships within the family, causing it to stabilize into healthier patterns.[1] Minuchin contends that pathology rests not in the individual, but within the family system. SFT utilizes, not only a special systems terminology, but also a means of depicting key family parameters diagrammatically. Its focus is on the structure of the family, including its various substructures. In this regard, Minuchin is a follower of systems and communication theory, since his structures are defined by transactions among interrelated systems within the family. He subscribes to the systems notions of wholeness and equifinality, both of which are critical to his notion of change. An essential trait of SFT is that the therapist actually enters, or "joins", with the family system as a catalyst for positive change. Joining with a family is a goal of the therapist early on in his or her therapeutic relationship with the family. Structural and Strategic therapy are important therapeutic models to identify as many therapists use these models as the bases for treatment. Each model...
Words: 1894 - Pages: 8
...connectedness that they are unable to obtain from other systems. After describing the demographics and different types of street gangs, Ruble and Turner (2000), apply the “same concepts that are used to describe family systems, such as hierarchies, subsystems and suprasystems, entropy and negentropy, boundaries, communication, and homeostatsis (Broderick, 1990; Minuchin, 1974; Walsh, 1982), to street gangs. They conclude that because gangs function based on an interrelatedness that connects every aspect of gang life together within a complex web of interactions, researchers and professional who seek to provide effective intervention programs must aim to approach street gangs from a holistic and systematic perspective. Points of Agreement with Systems Theory Ruble and Turner are consistent in their theoretical application of the concepts found in family systems theory. For example, the family systems concept of hierarchies is explored. In families, parents are in the executive position of leadership and make decisions that will affect all family members while children assume a subordinate position (Minuchin, 1974). This hierarchal system is visible in street gangs...
Words: 1176 - Pages: 5
...Systems Paper BSHS/312 Systems Paper Structural Therapy was first recognized by Salvador Minuchin in the structural school of counseling back in 1974. Minuchin observed that families developed patterns within the family that resulted in structure. Each family operates with transactional patterns that represent a system. Structure is a mutual agreements made between people until someone decides that they want to go in another direction. Families have a process of verbal and nonverbal communication that amongst family members makes it easy to understand. The goal of structural therapy is to transform dysfunctional family structures by creating imbalance. The attempt is done by the therapist to influence the family into positive change. Ultimately, the goal for the family is to focus on having change to better balance. Family-Directed Structural Therapy (FDST) is an approach to family therapy built upon traditional concepts of Structural Family Therapy, the strengths model, and group work therapy. This therapy is focused on a multicultural population in the Midwest being researched the last 12 years. The diversity that the Midwest had was one of the better options for observation having the different cultures. Sessions are set and timed as the initial assessment generally requires one 90 minute session and then seven to nine sessions with a therapist. Therapist assists the family in incorporating the process and vocabulary of FDST into their everyday lives....
Words: 453 - Pages: 2
...are also provided, in addition to an overall summary of what was learned in the process of researching Structural Family Therapy. Keywords: structural family therapy, structural family theory, family systems Structural Family Therapy Historical Overview Structural Family Therapy (SFT) was created based on a theory developed by Salvador Minuchin which focuses on functioning within a family system (Nichols, 2014). Minuchin was born and raised Jewish in Argentina prior to moving to Israel where he became a physician. During the early 1960’s, he worked with at-risk youth within underprivileged sectors of society and poor families. As a result of his work with minority groups, Structural Family Therapy is one of the only theories with a sense of multi-culturalism. In 1967, Minuchin wrote a book entitled Families of the Slums which described his experiences with these families. While he was trained in psychodynamic techniques, he opted to take a different approach in working with this population by focusing on sociological aspects and how families were impacted within a social context (The Minuchin Center for the Family, 2012). What Minuchin found while working with poor families was that the interaction styles between them were more action-oriented than verbal, so in response, the treatment team created techniques which entailed a more hands-on style rather than a classic psychodynamic or talk therapy...
Words: 3686 - Pages: 15
...Structural Approach to Family Counseling Beverly Manning COUN 601 – Marriage and Family Counseling I Liberty University July 5, 2013 ABST RACT Families are always growing and changing. They are considered living systems made up of many components. If families can’t adjust to change, the capability of the family and its individual members can be compromised. Structural family therapy (SFT) is a therapeutic approach that identifies that families have a lot of strengths. SFT tries to push families past dysfunctional patterns of interaction. This report details the application of the structural family therapy model, and I will specify my own therapeutic technique and explain how I would include faith into my counseling sessions. Structural Approach to Family Counseling One of the most important goals of a therapist is to understand how a family works. The family therapy movement has had the daunting task of trying to uncover the many facets of the family. Family therapy is full of many different approaches from psychoanalysis to the narrative approach. Each approach has been able to uncover a new aspect of the family. According to Nicholas (1999), the structural family therapy has had a significant impact on family therapy by introducing concepts of family hierarchy and boundaries. This allowed for the introduction to the idea of family as a new and organized strategy to cope...
Words: 3701 - Pages: 15
...Family Counseling Approach: Structural Model Jennifer Tankard Liberty University Abstract Structural family therapist takes an approach to therapy that seeks to help the entire family rather than looking at the family member that has a presenting problem. Healthy families have a healthy balance within the family subset when clearly defined roles are present. Structural family therapy was developed by Salvador Minuchin and a team of researchers from New York. The techniques of the theory are centered on creating a healthy relationship among family members. Structural family therapist looks at creating a healthy partnership with each member of the family to help the family find a solution to their problem. Structural family therapy can be integrated with a biblical worldview. Counseling from a Christian perspective will help families understand God’s design for the family, and understand the role of each member as stated in scripture. Christian counselors using an integrative approach to structural therapy will be able to help families see the biblical roles that God has set for the husband/father, wife/mother and the children/siblings to develop a functional family. Keywords: Theory, intervention, psychosomatic, integration, structural therapy, dysfunction, family. Part I Introduction Everyone has a family. Each family is different in how the system functions. A family is defined in many different ways. Some consist of the traditional definition of father, mother...
Words: 4305 - Pages: 18
...stress in the relationship between these two people, a third person or thing is brought in to relieve this tension, known as triangulation, where two individuals are on the inside and another is on the outside of the relationship (Helm 2010). For example, if a married couple is having difficulty with each other, they may focus on their children instead of confronting the problems within their marriage (Helm 2010). When addressing the healthy family structure versus an unhealthy family structure, Helm (2010) describes Salvador Minuchin’s structural family theory. According to Helm (2010), Minuchin describes a healthy family structure as one that shows some flexibility in boundaries over time. Helm (2010) presented an example of when young children become adolescents, they are usually allowed more freedom in making decisions than they were as children. However, Helm (201) states that Minuchin described dysfunctional families as inflexible and unchanging over time....
Words: 945 - Pages: 4
...CASE STUDY:MAVIS, JOHN AND APRIL BIRD ASSIGNMENT 3 FOR PYC4808UNIQUE NUMBER .STUDENT : Siwa Gv Case Study: Bird Family Pg1 1. 3-generational genogram: Bird FamilyNotes on Map: Size of Icon determined by significance of relationship and/or influence Considered significant: information regarding Mavis’s deep distrust towards others Considered significant: information regarding John’s deep attraction towards the “instant family” Lack of information regarding relationship between Mavis with mother and siblings: assumed none Lack of information regarding relationship between John with father: assumed none Lack of information regarding relationship between April and biological father: assumed none PYC 4808 Assignment 03 Student 3350-133-5 August 2013 Fiure: Authors own Case Study: Bird Family Pg2 2. Eco map: Bird Family in ContextNotes on Map: Size of Icon determined by significance of relationship/influence to client Absence of arrows where direction of influence is uncertain Spheres of influence outside of family is assumed Lack of information regarding the interconnection between the two families of origin Lack of information regarding relationship between April and biological father: assumed none PYC 4808 Assignment 03 Student 3350-133-5 August 2013 Figure: Authors own Case Study: Bird Family Pg3 3. Perspectives:a. Perspective of each family member: Mavis Bird: Mavis Bird grew up in what appears to have been an unstable...
Words: 3393 - Pages: 14
...PYC4808 Ecosystemic Psychology Assignment Two Question 1 : Name and define the first-order cybernetic principles as described in your prescribed textbook. When viewing first-order cybernetics, we observe from the outside of what is going on in the system. We do not view ourselves as part of the system and do not concern ourselves with what the system does or why it does it. What we are concerned with is describing what is happening in the system. We aim to answer questions such as, “who are members of the system?, what are the characteristic patterns of interaction in this system?, what rules and roles form the boundaries of the system and distinguish it as separate from other systems?. “(Becvar & Becvar 2014. Pg 69 ) In first-order cybernetics we also attempt to find out how freely information is transmitted in and out of the particular system, as well as view the balance between change and stability within the system. Consistent with the element of recursiveness, the system is one that has reciprocal causalty and not linear and both people and events are mutually interactive and influenced. In order to analyze the family system, relationships and interactions amongst members are viewed instead of viewing the individuals in isolation. From the perspective all systems are influenced and influence each other. From a cybernetic perspective, we acknowledge that an isolated cause/effect event is only a small part of a large pattern of circularity. “Feedback refers to the...
Words: 2828 - Pages: 12
...TABLE OF CONTENT CONTENTS | PAGES | 1 Question 1: Three-generational genogram | 2 | 2.Question 2: Ecomap | 4 | 3. Question 3: a) Story as seen from perspective of each family members | 6 | b) The story from the vantage point of the family position in the family life cycle | 7 | 4. Question 4: First-order cybernetic description | 9 | 5. Question 5: Second-order cybernetic description | 12 | 6. Reference | 15 | Ecosystemic Assignment no: 3 PYC4808 UNIQUE NO: 536936 QUESTION 1 Three-generational genogram of the Bird family Mavis’ stepmom Mavis’ stepmom John’s mom John’s mom Family A (John’s family) Family B(Mavis’s family) Mavis’s father Mavis’s father Mavis’s mom Mavis’s mom ? ? John’s father John’s father Alex Alex ? ? B.F’ Mom B.F’ Mom S S B2 B2 Alexandra (John' stepbrother Alexandra (John' stepbrother John (45yrs) John (45yrs) B3 B3 B.F B.F Mavis (42) Mavis (42) Howard (50yrs) Howard (50yrs) Weak relationship April (15yrs) April (15yrs) KEY : Male: Female: Marriage: Divorce: Relationship abuse: Moved to: Foster home: S: Mavis’s sister B1: Mavis’s brother number 1 B2: Mavis’s brother number 2 B.F: Mavis’s best friend Mavis’s deceased friend : B.F mom : Best friend’s mom Weak relationship: _ _ _ Affected: alcoholic: QUESTION 2 Ecomap of the Bird family John’s dad John’s dad Mavis’s brother Mavis’s brother Mavis’s dad Mavis’s dad Mavis’s stepmom Mavis’s stepmom ...
Words: 2946 - Pages: 12
...specific issue that someone outside of the family can help with better than then members involved as sometimes it is difficult for members to determine what their role is and how to have proper cohesion with their loved ones as we are all emotional people. There are several models used to address families, depending on the situation and what they are needing to improve. This particular model is called structural family therapy (SFT), this model is a method of psychotherapy developed by Salvador Minuchin which addresses problems in functioning within the family. SFT is slightly different from the usual techniques of psychoanalysis and psychotherapy within family therapy. The usual models suggest the family is a unit that operates within larger systems, such as culture, the community, and organizations. The goal is for this particular system to grow and change overtime, but sometimes a family gets “stuck,” often resulting from behavioral or mental health issues of one of its family members. Minuchin says a family is function or dysfunctional depending on its ability to adapt to various stressors. Structural family therapy is a model of treatment that is based on systems theory. The model focuses on structural changes as the main goal of therapy (Colapinto, as cited in Home, 2000). It is a way of thinking and...
Words: 823 - Pages: 4
...Introduction Structural family therapy (SFT) is a method of psychotherapy developed by Salvador Minuchin which addresses problems in functioning within a family. Therapeutic interventions for troubled families often sound and appear unusual or abstract, such as Structural Family Therapy. This isn’t a name that instantly rolls off your tongue or a therapy you hear used frequently in the press or in movies, such as the more ubiquitous techniques of psychoanalysis and psychotherapy. But SFT is similar to other types of therapies categorized under the psychological framework of family systems therapy. These types of therapies view the family unit as a system that lives and operates within larger systems, such as a culture, the community, and organizations. This system – ideally – grows and changes over time. But sometimes a family gets stuck, often resulting from behavioral or mental health issues of one of its family members. Rather than focus on the individual’s pathology, however, SFT considers problems in the family’s structure, a dysfunction in the way the family interacts or operates. SFT does not maintain that the family’s interactions, or “transactions” cause the pathology, but rather that the family’s transactions support or encourage the symptoms. Transactions are simply patterns of how family members routinely interact with each other. For example, a mother’s transaction with her daughter could be controlling and overprotective, or an older brother’s transaction with...
Words: 1151 - Pages: 5
...STUDENT NUMBER 46600361 PYC4808 ECOSYSTEMIC PSYCHOLOGY ASSIGNMENT NUMBER 2 UNIQUE ASSIGNMENT NUMBER 588438 TOPIC: FIRST AND SECOND ORDER CYBERNETICS TABLE OF CONTENTS Page 1. Introduction 1 2. First order cybernetics 1 3. Second order cybernetics 1 4. How reality is seen by each approach 2 5. How health and pathology is addressed by each approach 3 6. Role and function of therapists 4 7. Ethical concerns 4 8. How first and second order cybernetic approach can be integrated In a useful and complimentary way 5 9. Conclusion 6 10. References 7 1 1. Introduction Cybernetics refers to the principles that regulate the dissemination of information or messages. Cybernetics has to do with the basic principles underlying the control, regulation, and exchange and processing of information. The influence of cybernetics is apparent in the Eco systemic approach because it stresses relations and connections and highlights the study of interactional patterns between and within systems. Cybernetic theory regards the construction of reality as a non-linear concept, it is concerned not so much with what systems consist of, but how they function. First and second order cybernetic approaches are consistent with each other, in the assumption that reality is understood as perceptually constructed or created. (Becvar and Becvar 2006). This reality may be explained and interpreted in the first order therapy from...
Words: 2726 - Pages: 11
...Relationship Between Husband and Wife Abstract: When the two entities are able to deliver their thoughts and feelings it helps each one of them to understand and know one another. This would also help one of them to view the world from the viewpoint of the other. The pattern and frequency of communication change according to several factors especially time and familiarity. Yet, effort towards an effective communication should be present in both the entities involved in the relationship. In this particular case of study these entities are the husband and the wife. The purpose here is to show how the communication between husband and wife helps in shaping their relationship and deciding the direction and outcome of family systems and decision-making. While studying the family structures, we have considered mainly a couple and one child framework (that is a triangle structure) for most of the analysis. At the same time, the paper also involves in studying the different factors, which affect such communication, and how these may influence the entire family orientation and structure. Introduction Communication refers to the exchange of ideas and information among two or more organisms via certain medium or means. Communication may occur with the help of words or through signs and gestures. The idea is to share some message and communication is effective when the message is shared successfully or the thoughts can be transferred to the concerned entity. Communication has...
Words: 5044 - Pages: 21
...Chronic illness has a large effect on everyone, no matter what the age. In adolescents, they are still dependent on their parents as their caregivers, and are old enough to understand and make decisions for themselves. Chronic illness has been defined as “an illness that is prolonged in duration, does not often resolve spontaneously, and is rarely cured completely.” (Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing). Adolescence is “a period of rapid physical, psychological, emotional and social development during which young people develop a sense of an independent identity, focus on peer acceptance, and plan for the future and then develop romantic and intimate relationships.” (Erickson 1963, Suris et al 2004 Christie & Viner 2005). Young people with chronic illness have the same developmental issues as those who are perfectly healthy. Hundreds of studies have been undertaken in regards to how chronic illness impact the lives of adolescents and the people around them. One example is the Methodological quality was assessed using criteria described by Cesario et al (Journal of Obstetrics, Gynaecology& Neonatal Nursing 31 2002 31) and the conclusion was that 20 studies identified involving young people with wide variety of chronic illnesses. Seven common themes were found between identified studies; developing and maintaining friendships, importance of family, attitude to treatment, experiences of school, being normal/getting on with life, relationship with healthcare...
Words: 1425 - Pages: 6
