Family Psychology
Family Psychology Specialty Council
2012
What is Family Psychology
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Family Psychology is a specialty in professional psychology
that is focused on the emotions, thoughts, and behavior of
individuals, couples, and families in relationships and in the
broader environment in which they function.
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It is a specialty founded on principles of systems theory, with
the family as a system being of most central focus.
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Family Psychology has a rich research and practice tradition
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Within this framework family therapists might study and
practice with:
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Individuals
Couples
Families
Work groups
Community groups of all kinds
Organized systems
Major focus
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It is not so much that family psychologists treat different
populations or even that a family psychologist’s clients
present with vastly different problems.
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Rather, it is the way in which family psychologist’s think and
work that differentiates him or her from the more
traditionally trained professional psychologist.
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The family psychologist is trained to approach client issues
from systemic and multisystemic perspectives.
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This perspective provides a vastly different conceptual model from which to
view the complex presenting issues of families and their constituent members.
Whether the client is a family, a couple, or a single member
of a family, the family psychologist approaches both research
and practice from a systemic perspective
History
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Family Psychology has its roots in the early child welfare
and social work movements of the early 1900’s
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The unique nature of Family Psychology emerged in the
1960’s with the emergence of “systems thinking”
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The early systems thinkers were mathematicians, economists,
engineers, and communication theorists
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The first generation of Family Psychology theoretically
based practices were built on systems thinking and come
about in the middle 1960’s
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Evidence-based Family Psychology emerged from the
extensive research on effective practices beginning in the
1980’s until the present
Scope
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Family Psychologists work with individuals, couples, families and
broader social systems. Regardless of the client, the Family
Psychologist conceptualizes treatment from an interpersonal,
systems perspective.
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Family Psychology researchers study family dynamics, couple
dynamics, relationship patterns and effective practices
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Family Psychology intervention have been found to be effective
with:
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Youth behavior problems
Couple and family communication issues
Couple relational distress
Substance use and abuse (in couples, families and with youth)
Managing mental illness by reducing hospitalizations and relapse
Schooling problems of youngsters
Behavioral problems of children or adolescents
Parenting problems
Main Theories
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Traditional/Historical Approaches
• Structural Family Therapy
• Strategic Family Therapy
• Multigenerational Family Therapy
• McMaster Model
Evidence Based Family Interventions
• Functional Family Therapy
• Multisystemic Family Therapy
• Emotionally Focused Couple Therapy
• Multidimensional Family Therapy
• Cognitive Family/Couple Therapy
• Behavioral Couple Therapy
Typical Techniques
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Evidence based Treatments
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Systems interventions (including family therapy) from a
wide array of emphases
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Network therapy
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Couples therapy
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Group therapy and work group therapy
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Consultation with external authorities such as school
professionals, primary and chronic care physicians,
juvenile authorities and the courts
Sub-Areas
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Family Therapy
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Couple Therapy
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Parent Education
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Divorce Mediation
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Sex Therapy
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Organizational Consultation
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Forensic Parenting and Child Evaluations
The effectiveness of Family Psychology
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Family Psychology has a 50 year tradition of research
focusing on:
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The effectiveness of family psychology intervention
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The patterns and processes of family and couple functioning
Family Psychology has repeatedly been found to be as or
more effective than alternative approaches for a wide
range of psychological problems
Current Issues
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How to effectively implement Family and Couple based
treatment in community settings
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Identifying adaptation for cultural and ethnic diversity
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Integrating Family Psychology into Primary Care settings
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Primary training in Couple and Family Psychology in
graduate and undergraduate training
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Using Family Psychology intervention methods to work
with major mental illness
Resources
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Books:
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Sexton, T. L., Weeks, G., Robbins, M. (2003). Handbook of Family
Therapy. New York: Routledge.
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Fonagy, P. Taret, M, Cottrell, D, Phillips, J, and Kurtz, Z. (2002).
What works for whom? A critical review of treatments for children and
adolescents. New York: Guilford Press.
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Kazdin, A. E. and Weisz, J.R. Evidence-based psychotherapies for
children and adolescents. (2003). New York: Guilford Press
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Bray, J.H. and Stanton, M. (2009). The Wiley-Blackwell Handbook of
Family Psychology. New York: Wiley-Blackwell
Journals:
• Journal of Family Psychology
• Family and Couple Research and Practice
• Journal of Marital and Family Therapy
• Journal of Family Therapy