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VII. Contemporary Models of Family Therapy

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Leslie Barnes-Young, PhD, Francis Marion University

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Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2003

Postmodernism

• Since the founding of the classic schools of family therapy, there has occurred a shift in emphasis.

• The postmodern or constructivist position assumes that there is no objective reality.

• Our reality is but one of many shaped by our use of language.

• One consequence has been to make therapists humbler in dealing with families.

Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2003

Solution-Focused TherapyBasic Concepts

• This popular model has its roots in the strategic approaches.

• Assumes that people become constrained by narrow, pessimistic views of their problems.

• Therapists get clients to concentrate on solutions to problems that have worked.

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Solution-Focused Therapy:

Therapeutic Techniques• Formula first session task–

asks the client to identify what happens in their life that they want to continue.

• The miracle question–helps clients look beyond the problem & toward a goal.

• Scaling questions–”On a scale of 1 to 10, how depressed do you feel right now?”

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Narrative Therapy:Basic Concepts

• Concern is with the way people construct meaning rather than the way they behave.

• Personal experience is fundamentally ambiguous and shaped by the words used to describe it.

• Our explanations of our experiences are our stories and we organize life by them.

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Narrative Therapy:Therapeutic Techniques

• The goal of therapy is to transform clients’ stories and alter their identities.

• This is done by separating people from their problems.

• Exceptions to the prevailing problem narrative are highlighted.

• The centerpiece of therapy is questioning.

Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2003

Postmodernism online:

• Solution-Focused Therapy

http://www.brief-therapy.org/

• Narrative Therapy

http://www.narrativeapproaches.com/