The Importance Of Children In Family Therapy

reira, J. K. (2014). Can we play too? Experiential techniques for family therapists to actively include children in sessions. The Family Journal, 22(4), 390-396. doi:10.1177/1066480714533639

In this article Pereira (2014) focuses on techniques that can be used to include children in family therapy. This article specifically refers to children who are 6 years or older, being that the techniques used may be too complicated for younger children to understand. Most therapists struggle to find ways to actively engage children in family therapy due to the differences in level of verbal expressions, as well as differences in life experiences (Pereira, 2014). To make family therapy more effective for all members of the family, play is often incorporated. Pereira (2014), lists many inclusive techniques that can be used when working with a family who has children who are 6 years

Topham and Vanfleet (2011), state that a substantial number of family therapist do not engage children in the process. The main reason for this tends to be that a lot of family counselors are not comfortable with engaging children in therapy and they have a difficult time finding ways to engage children and adults in the same session. Filial therapy is defined as play-based treatment approach, which models how to engage with young children in therapy using structure (Topham & Vanfleet, 2011). Filial therapy engages all children in the family, and it can be used to treat a variety of different problems. To engage in Filial Therapy parents are taught how to apply skills in order to maximize their children’s abilities in play to develop, heal from traumatic experiences, and grow (Topham & Vanfleet, 2011). While engaging in Filial Therapy parents learn to use new parenting behaviors that are healthier in promoting child