Structural Case Assessment: A Later in Life Couple Structural Case Assessment: A Later in Life Couple The purpose of this paper is to assess Arnold and Kay’s family system. The assessment will also determine and develop treatment goals utilizing Structural Therapy. Consistent with the literature, this paper will include sections on an introduction to client’s Arnold and Kay’s case, their presenting concerns, their family structure and interactional patterns, and an explication of Structural Therapy’s theoretical concepts. Introduction to Client The purpose of this section assessed Kay and Arnold’s family structure. Kay and Arnold are depicted as a heterosexual, traditional, married couple. They have been married for thirty-one years. Kay is portrayed as a middle-aged, Caucasian female with medium-length strawberry blonde hair. Arnold is depicted as a middle-aged, Caucasian male with short-length dark brown hair. The couple was portrayed as an upper-middle socioeconomically family. In therapy, Kay and Arnold were dressed conservatively. Arnold shared that he is an accountant and a partner at Dieber, Baumgate and Soames Accounting Firm. Kay shared that she is a sales clerk at Coldwater Creek Store. Their spiritual preferences were unknown and there were no spiritual inferences offered in therapy. It was indicated that Arnold and Kay live in Omaha, Nebraska. They have two children—a son named Brad, a daughter named Molly, and a son-in-law named Mark—Molly’s husband. Presented Concerns Arnold and Kay’s presented problems that their marriage had grown increasingly distant. Kay complained that her and Arnold were not married, only roommates. And, albeit they actively communicated with eac... ... middle of paper ... ...ly roommates. Moreover, albeit they actively communicated with each other, their discussions were insignificant. Thus, the goal of therapy was to restore the couples missing affection and intimacy, to assist the couple in open communication, and to give the spouses tools to work together to rearrange, create and achieve greater marital satisfaction. Through, structural mapping, joining (I.e “breaking the nose”), enactment, and marital homework assignments, the writer observed that the goal of therapy would be achieved. It is recommended that every so often the couple revisits couple therapy to prevent relapse. References Ottenberg, M. (2001). An evaluation of measures of depression to provided recommendations for their use in dance/movement therapy outcome research. (Master's thesis), Available from ProQuest Dissertations and Thesis. (1403358).
Partner/Spouse: Katherine (Kari) D'Amora. Kari is a former school psychologist, with a B.A in Psychology and Gender Studies from College of New Jersey and a Ph.D. in School Psychology from Temple University. Before she finished her Ph.D., Kari worked for several social service organizations, including Action AIDS and Philadelphia Communities in Schools. She later took an “extended maternity leave” during her children’s Pre-school years, before working part-time as an adjunct professor at Temple University
For Bowen, the family is the unit of observation and the emphasis is put on emotional forces that are common to all families, this helps to reduce the significance of which family member is causing the problem. Bowens approach to change is understood within the context of striving to understand life’s forces, the very principal that gives coherence to Bowens approach to therapy. (Friedman, 1991). When attempting to achieve change within a client the source of the issue is less important, but rather trying to locate the systematic forces within a family as well as those that are transmitted from generation...
Structural therapy focuses on the family as a whole. It is concerned about how the issues effect the family relationships and connections. This theory concentrates on how well the understanding is amongst the family members and counselor. The members of the family are prompted to understand how the issues were created, where did the issues come from, when the issues started effecting their family, and what the family needs to overcome their issues. Its focus is to help others understand and improve negative behavior. The structural therapy concentrates on the interaction and boundaries of families with separating the whole family into smaller groups. The subsystems will create a clearer understanding of what issues are hurting their family environment (Gladding, S. T. 2010). The counselor is concerned about the members interaction because this reveals how strong the relationships and connections are in the home. The boundaries are important because they create an understanding that there are limits and order, and the boundaries can be diffused, rigid, or clear (Gladding, S. T. 2010). The counselor is expected to identify techniques so members can understand which boundaries are clear, positive, and healthy (Gladding, S. T. 2010).
The world they live in demonstrates the worst parts of humanity, forcing their relationship to be that of two survivors, not of a family. In times of distress and danger, it is not uncommon for the relationships between people to change,
Napier provides a crucial exploration of the therapy of a family struggling with battles for the structure of their family and battles to define and grow their relationships with one another. Napier and Whitaker seamlessly and purposely work with each family member, educating and
Fred, Wilma, and Rose present an interesting perspective when looking at their family through a Structural Family Systems Theory. When trying to work with the family a social worker will utilize Functional Family Therapy in order to understand their structure and maybe ameliorate some of the family’s problems. Using Rose and her family as the clients it will be able explain what interventions we can use when we learn the constructs of the theory.
Scott met Laci when they were both attending California Polytechnic State University in 1994. They dated for a while then decided to move in together and get married in 1997. They moved to Modesto, CA to be closer to Laci’s family where Scott spent his days selling fertilizer and Laci as a substitute teacher. Laci found out she was pregnant in 2002 with Scott’s baby but Scott was not so thrilled. Scott felt overwhelmed and that a baby would cramp his style. In the midst of what was going on at home Scott was looking for an outlet that didn’t remind him of home and started ha...
Structural Family Therapy offers a framework that provides order and meaning within the family connections (Nichols, 2013). Divorce for a family is considered a significant transition for all parties involved. When counseling a family going through divorce the structural family therapist’s job is to build an alliance with the family and obtain information about the structure. The structure of the family consists of the roles, interactions, organization, and hierarchy. Family therapy yields the belief that changing the organization of the family leads to change in the individual members. The structural family therapist often will try to become part of the family to gain a perspective of their issues as whole so not to place the focus on one individual. Joining is an empathetic approach in helping families explain and break down their individual stories without uncomfortable challenge or unnecessary confrontation (Nichols, 2013). It is important to note that family dysfunction that often leads to divorce is not attributed to one individual, but the entire family system. In structural family therapy, part of dealing with the issue of divorce in the family is to focus on the interactions between all the family members both positive and negative. Through these interactions the therapist can discover where the conflicts arise, which will in turn help the therapist understand how these negative interaction affect the family. Family therapy in these cases allows for repair of long-standing interactional patterns in which divorce is just one of a series of ongoing transactions that are disruptive to the child’s development (Kaplan, 1977, p.75). The structural family therapist often has the family play out these family interactions via enactments so that he can get a firsthand look at maladaptive patterns, roles, and
Duty, G. (2010, December 10). Family Systems Therapy. Lecture presented at Principles of Counseling Class Notes, Bethany.
Each member of my family have to feel like the therapist is working with them if not change will not occur. The use of family mapping will help distinguish the types of boundaries that exist among my family. With the disengagement within my family subsystems, using the enactment technique will illustrate the interaction among family members. I am close to the siblings that I grew up with and my father his siblings were very close. With that being said, I will like to see the dynamic between my aunts and uncles when they are all in the same room together after years of being apart. I chose structural family therapy because at the end of the therapy session, I want the restructuring of my family structure.
Therapy Analysis The purpose of this paper is to examine the efficacy of my work as a co-therapist during the fifth session with the simulated couple Katy and Michelle. I will discuss our therapy agenda and the goals we hope to attain during the session. It is prudent to begin by giving a brief outline of the couple’s present problem and the patterns of dysfunction that I have identified within their relationship. In my opinion, it is the therapist’s job to recognize patterns and behaviors that disrupt the intimate bond between the partners.
According to Richard Charles (2001) “the effectiveness of family systems theory rests not much on empirical research but on clinical reports of positive treatment outcomes, the personal benefits experienced by the families that underwent this kind of treatment, and the elegance of Bowen’s theory” (p. 279). Bowen’s family systems theory views the family as an emotional unit and is a theory of human behavior. Systems thinking is used to describe the complex interactions in the unit. However, the client’s ability to differentiate himself/herself from the family of origin is the basis for Bowen’s family systems theory. In addition, the primary focus for growth within the emotional system is differentiation of self.
Structured Family Therapy (SFT) refers the mere undesignated rules that structure how a family interacts with one another (Walsh, 2010). The family unit is composed of systems or parts, and the parts must be unified to compile a whole unit to create homeostasis (Broderick, 1993). SFT therapy is warranted when dysfunction enters the family unit, and creates a deficiency of adaption by the individual which disrupts the family structure (Boyle, 2000). The family structure is composed of major components such as: subsystems, executive authority, boundaries, rules, roles, alliances, triangles, flexibility, and communication (Walsh,
The techniques used in marriage and family counseling can be different. For instance, counselors will sometimes handle family therapy in different ways than they would couples or marital therapy. Both family and marriage c...
Moreover, the foundational approach to structural family therapy are that families’ are views as psychosocial systems, attached within social systems, which operate in a transactional patters. The transaction patterns are how, when and whom to relate, and reinforce systems. As a result each family duty are carried ou...