TEST BANK
TEST BANK
,Table of Contents
Introduction. Becoming a Family Therapist 1
Chapter 1. The Evolution of Family Therapy 7
Chapter 2. Basic Techniques of Family Therapy 19
Chapter 3. The Fundamental Concepts of Family Therapy 28
Chapter 4. Bowen Family Systems Therapy 40
Chapter 5. Strategic Family Therapy 53
Chapter 6. Structural Family Therapy 69
Chapter 7. Experiential Family Therapy 81
Chapter 8. Psychoanalytic Family Therapy 93
Chapter 9. Cognitive-Behavioral Family Therapy 106
Chapter 10. Family Therapy in the Twenty-First Century 117
Chapter 11. Solution-Focused Therapy 136
Chapter 12. Narrative Therapy 143
Chapter 13. Comparative Analysis 152
Chapter 14. Family Therapy Research 172
Answer Keys 181
iii
,Introduction. Becoming of Family Therapist
Learning Outcomes
1. Explain how unresolved family conflicts can complicate an identified patient’s problems.
2. Describe how the culture emphasis on individual achievement may obscure our fundamental
connectedness to each other.
3. Compare the value of individual therapy to family therapy.
INTRODUCTION
Family therapy isn’t just a new set of techniques; it’s a whole new approach to
understanding human behavior -- as fundamentally shaped by its social context.
SUMMARY OF KEY POINTS AND ISSUES
The Myth of the Hero
While our culture celebrates the uniqueness of the individual and the search for an
autonomous self, we cannot deny our inescapable connection to our families. We do many
things alone, but we are defined and sustained by a network of relationships. Yet when we think
about families, it’s often in negative terms. Talk of “dysfunctional families” often amounts to
little more than parent bashing. People feel controlled and helpless not because they are victims
of parental failings, but because they don’t see past individual personalities to the structural
patterns that make them a family.
Psychotherapeutic Sanctuary
The two most influential approaches to psychotherapy, Freud's psychoanalysis and Carl
Rogers's client-centered therapy, were predicated on the assumption that therapy should be
conducted in private, isolated from stressful relationships. Problems were thought to arise from
interactions with others and were best alleviated in a confidential relationship between patient
and therapist. In some ways, psychotherapy displaced the family’s function of resolving the
problems of everyday life.
Family versus Individual Therapy
Individual therapy helps people face their fears and learn to become more fully
themselves. Treatment is directed at the person and his or her individual make-up. In contrast,
family therapists believe that the dominant forces in our lives are located externally, in the
family. Therapy based on this framework is directed at changing the organization of the family.
Family therapy influences the entire family because every family member is changed -- and
continues to exert synchronous changes on each other.
A family approach is often preferable for treating problems with children, complaints
about relationships, or symptoms that develop around the time of a major family transition.
Individual therapy may be more useful in cases where people identify something about
themselves that they’ve tried in vain to change while their social environment remains relatively
stable.
1
Copyright © 2020, 2014, 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
, Although psychotherapy can succeed by focusing on either the psychology of the
individual or the organization of the family, both perspectives -- psychology and social context --
are useful for a full understanding of people and their problems. Once, therapists were
encouraged to learn models of treatment that focused on either the individual or the family,
because they were considered different enterprises. Today, family therapists treat individuals,
recognize the impact of psychopathology, and see family therapy as an orientation rather than a
technique. Individual therapists recognize the importance of family dynamics and direct their
efforts to understanding and changing patterns of relationships. In short, a good therapist looks
at the whole picture -- barriers in the environment as well as those in a patient’s mind.
The Power of Family Therapy
The power of family therapy derives from including people with a significant impact on
the identified patient and influencing their interactions. Instead of relying of a client's account of
relationship problems, those relationships are brought into the consulting room. Moreover, when
changes are initiated in family therapy, the fact that all family members are included means that
positive changes in each of them can continue to reinforce progress. The downside of this is that
the inclusion of other family members may allow individuals to blame each other for problems
and to quarrel about who is responsible for what. Getting past blame in order to help family
members recognize their own role in family problems is part of the art of family therapy.
Mental illness has traditionally been explained in linear terms, either medical or
psychoanalytic. Emotional distress is treated as a symptom of internal dysfunction with
historical causes. Such linear explanations take the form of A B. Recursive, or circular,
explanations take into account mutual interaction and mutual influence, A B. The illusion
of unilateral influence, or linear thinking, often biases therapists, especially when they only hear
one side of the story. But once they understand that reciprocity is the governing principle of
relationship, therapists can help people get past thinking in terms of villains and victims.
Learning to think in circles rather than lines empowers individuals to look at the half of the
equation they can control. The power of family therapy derives from bringing family members
together to transform their interactions. Instead of isolating individuals from the emotional
origins of their conflict, problems are addressed at their source.
SUGGESTED LEARNING ACTIVITIES
Videos/Films
Salvador Minuchin: Unfolding the Laundry Distributor: AAMFT
Minuchin demonstrates his structural approach with a large blended, recently married, dual-
career family with five stepchildren. The IP is the youngest son (age 11) who is acting out.
Minuchin defocuses attention on the IP, relabels the sibling behavior, and focuses his attention
on the couple. Approximately 147 minutes.
Paul Watzlawick: Mad or Bad? Distributor: AAMFT
In his consultation with a family whose 25-year-old son presents with chronic somatic
symptoms, Watzlawick employs the strategic use of Ericksonian-style questions. The systemic
function of symptoms in protecting the family from other problems is highlighted.
Approximately 136 min.
2
Copyright © 2020, 2014, 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
TEST BANK
,Table of Contents
Introduction. Becoming a Family Therapist 1
Chapter 1. The Evolution of Family Therapy 7
Chapter 2. Basic Techniques of Family Therapy 19
Chapter 3. The Fundamental Concepts of Family Therapy 28
Chapter 4. Bowen Family Systems Therapy 40
Chapter 5. Strategic Family Therapy 53
Chapter 6. Structural Family Therapy 69
Chapter 7. Experiential Family Therapy 81
Chapter 8. Psychoanalytic Family Therapy 93
Chapter 9. Cognitive-Behavioral Family Therapy 106
Chapter 10. Family Therapy in the Twenty-First Century 117
Chapter 11. Solution-Focused Therapy 136
Chapter 12. Narrative Therapy 143
Chapter 13. Comparative Analysis 152
Chapter 14. Family Therapy Research 172
Answer Keys 181
iii
,Introduction. Becoming of Family Therapist
Learning Outcomes
1. Explain how unresolved family conflicts can complicate an identified patient’s problems.
2. Describe how the culture emphasis on individual achievement may obscure our fundamental
connectedness to each other.
3. Compare the value of individual therapy to family therapy.
INTRODUCTION
Family therapy isn’t just a new set of techniques; it’s a whole new approach to
understanding human behavior -- as fundamentally shaped by its social context.
SUMMARY OF KEY POINTS AND ISSUES
The Myth of the Hero
While our culture celebrates the uniqueness of the individual and the search for an
autonomous self, we cannot deny our inescapable connection to our families. We do many
things alone, but we are defined and sustained by a network of relationships. Yet when we think
about families, it’s often in negative terms. Talk of “dysfunctional families” often amounts to
little more than parent bashing. People feel controlled and helpless not because they are victims
of parental failings, but because they don’t see past individual personalities to the structural
patterns that make them a family.
Psychotherapeutic Sanctuary
The two most influential approaches to psychotherapy, Freud's psychoanalysis and Carl
Rogers's client-centered therapy, were predicated on the assumption that therapy should be
conducted in private, isolated from stressful relationships. Problems were thought to arise from
interactions with others and were best alleviated in a confidential relationship between patient
and therapist. In some ways, psychotherapy displaced the family’s function of resolving the
problems of everyday life.
Family versus Individual Therapy
Individual therapy helps people face their fears and learn to become more fully
themselves. Treatment is directed at the person and his or her individual make-up. In contrast,
family therapists believe that the dominant forces in our lives are located externally, in the
family. Therapy based on this framework is directed at changing the organization of the family.
Family therapy influences the entire family because every family member is changed -- and
continues to exert synchronous changes on each other.
A family approach is often preferable for treating problems with children, complaints
about relationships, or symptoms that develop around the time of a major family transition.
Individual therapy may be more useful in cases where people identify something about
themselves that they’ve tried in vain to change while their social environment remains relatively
stable.
1
Copyright © 2020, 2014, 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
, Although psychotherapy can succeed by focusing on either the psychology of the
individual or the organization of the family, both perspectives -- psychology and social context --
are useful for a full understanding of people and their problems. Once, therapists were
encouraged to learn models of treatment that focused on either the individual or the family,
because they were considered different enterprises. Today, family therapists treat individuals,
recognize the impact of psychopathology, and see family therapy as an orientation rather than a
technique. Individual therapists recognize the importance of family dynamics and direct their
efforts to understanding and changing patterns of relationships. In short, a good therapist looks
at the whole picture -- barriers in the environment as well as those in a patient’s mind.
The Power of Family Therapy
The power of family therapy derives from including people with a significant impact on
the identified patient and influencing their interactions. Instead of relying of a client's account of
relationship problems, those relationships are brought into the consulting room. Moreover, when
changes are initiated in family therapy, the fact that all family members are included means that
positive changes in each of them can continue to reinforce progress. The downside of this is that
the inclusion of other family members may allow individuals to blame each other for problems
and to quarrel about who is responsible for what. Getting past blame in order to help family
members recognize their own role in family problems is part of the art of family therapy.
Mental illness has traditionally been explained in linear terms, either medical or
psychoanalytic. Emotional distress is treated as a symptom of internal dysfunction with
historical causes. Such linear explanations take the form of A B. Recursive, or circular,
explanations take into account mutual interaction and mutual influence, A B. The illusion
of unilateral influence, or linear thinking, often biases therapists, especially when they only hear
one side of the story. But once they understand that reciprocity is the governing principle of
relationship, therapists can help people get past thinking in terms of villains and victims.
Learning to think in circles rather than lines empowers individuals to look at the half of the
equation they can control. The power of family therapy derives from bringing family members
together to transform their interactions. Instead of isolating individuals from the emotional
origins of their conflict, problems are addressed at their source.
SUGGESTED LEARNING ACTIVITIES
Videos/Films
Salvador Minuchin: Unfolding the Laundry Distributor: AAMFT
Minuchin demonstrates his structural approach with a large blended, recently married, dual-
career family with five stepchildren. The IP is the youngest son (age 11) who is acting out.
Minuchin defocuses attention on the IP, relabels the sibling behavior, and focuses his attention
on the couple. Approximately 147 minutes.
Paul Watzlawick: Mad or Bad? Distributor: AAMFT
In his consultation with a family whose 25-year-old son presents with chronic somatic
symptoms, Watzlawick employs the strategic use of Ericksonian-style questions. The systemic
function of symptoms in protecting the family from other problems is highlighted.
Approximately 136 min.
2
Copyright © 2020, 2014, 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
