INTRODUCTION TO MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPY
PSYC 350
Summer, 2011
Koc University
Instructor: Raquel Delevi, Ph.D.,MFTI, CFLE
Email: rdelevi@yahoo.com
Class time: 9.30-11.20am MTWTh
Class place: ENG B16
Office no: SOS 274
Best way to contact me: Via email
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
This purpose of this course is to provide an introduction to marriage and family therapy and systems theory.
Selected family therapy frameworks including structural, intergenerational (Bowenian), solution focused,
experiential, and narrative theories will be presented. Techniques and skills necessary to assess, conceptualize, and
establish therapeutic rapport with families will be practiced through role plays and case analyses.
OBJECTIVES
As a result of the completion of this course, students will be able to:
 Apply systemic perspective in understanding and assessing family dynamics.
 Identify basic concepts and techniques of established models of family therapy.
 Demonstrate skills pertinent to family therapy.
 Examine their family experiences better through genogram construction and interpretation.
 Identify family dynamics and effectively work with families.
LEARNING FORMAT
Lecture, small group interaction, role plays, case study reviews, genogram construction,
and reading.
REQUIRED TEXTBOOKS
Nichols, M. P. (2010). Family Therapy: Concepts and Methods (9th Ed.), Needham Heights, MA: Allyn and
Bacon.
GRADES AND ASSIGNMENTS
Students will be awarded a point total from their performance in these areas:
1. Attendance
10 points
2. Family Genogram (10) and Reaction Paper (15)
25 points
3. In class assignments/case study discussions/Quizzes
15 points
4. Therapist interview and personal reaction paper
20 points
5. Group Project-Specific Population Presentation
40 points
6. 1 midterm (50 points) and 1 final (50 points)
100 points
TOTAL POSSIBLE
200 points
COURSE SPECIFICS
1. ATTENDANCE
Attendance will be taken daily by a sign in sheet. It is your responsibility to sign the attendance sheet daily. If
you forget to sign the attendance sheet you will not be counted as present for that class.
PUNCTUALITY IS IMPORTANT FOR ME. If you expect me to be in class on time, I expect the same
from you. When you come in late, it distracts me, and it is disrespectful for your other classmates who make a
point of being punctual. Furthermore, it is not fair to give the late comers full attendance points because they
are not in class for the whole class period. Therefore, please understand my sensitivity in this matter and DO
NOT COME TO CLASS LATE AT ALL.
 Your attendance grade will be calculated at the end of the session when 10 days of attendance are
randomly selected and your presence or absence on these days is determined.
 Absences are excused only when documentation of illness, loss of family member, or religious holiday
is presented to the instructor within 2 days of the absence. The days indicated on the excuse will be
accepted as verification of the excused absence. In the case that you miss an exam due to an unforeseen
event or illness, it is your responsibility to notify the instructor within 1 day (24 hours) before or after
the scheduled exam date; documentation will be required.
 If you are aware that you will miss an exam due to an excused scheduled event (funeral, athletic event,
religious holiday), the instructor must be notified as soon as possible before the event and another time
will be arranged to take the exam. Scheduled events do not include unexcused absences such as
weddings, vacations, or early departures.
2. FAMILY GENOGRAM AND PERSONAL REACTION PAPER
You will read instructions about how to construct your family genogram on
http://www.genopro.com/genogram/ . You will turn in your genogram and a narrative about your reaction
paper. These will be graded separately. You might also be asked to share your family genogram in a class
discussion.
Guidelines:
1. Construct a three-generation genogram of your family with Genopro software. (If you
are or were married, do not include your present or former spouse’s family of origin.)
2. This software is free but only works on PC computers, not on MAC computers.
If you would like, you can use separate colors to underscore different family patterns and issues. This
will make the genogram more clear and help in the interpretative process.
3. An interpretation of your family genogram. Use the interpretative format described in
the text below to help you identify and highlight significant family patterns and other intergenerational
issues in your genogram (physical abuse, cut offs, conflicts etc.) You are also responsible to discuss
how you have seen and/or hope to see these patterns redeemed. Please include at least one paragraph
about how this assignment made you feel.
4. The formatting must include the following:
 Minimum of 5 pages typed, including a cover page with your name, title of paper, date, class, and
section number (this means there needs to be 4 typed page for content at least, and one cover page in
addition to that)
 Double-spaced, 12-point font, Times New Roman, 1 inch margins on all four sides

Need to be submitted as a hard copy, in class.
**If you would like to know more about genograms, you can use the following resource: McGoldrick, M.,
Gerson, R., & Petry, S. (2008). Genograms: Assessment and intervention (3rd ed.), New York: W. W. Norton.
3. IN-CLASS ASSIGNMENTS/CASE STUDY DISCUSSIONS/QUIZZES
Case studies will help us apply our knowledge of therapies on specific cases. We will either discuss these as a
class, or in groups. You will get points for participation, level of engagement, and your knowledge of therapies
discussed. There might also be pop-quizzes in regards to therapies or case studies that we are covering.
4. THERAPIST INTERVIEW AND PERSONAL REACTION PAPER
You will find and conduct an in-depth interview with a professional marriage and family therapist. You will go
into the interview with pre-determined questions and take notes during the interview, which you will hand in
with a 5 page critique of the experience. The purpose of this assignment is for you to get an understanding of
what a typical marriage and family therapist in Turkey is experiencing professionally. I will provide you with
sample questions you can ask during the interview. Please make sure to include all of the questions you ask
during your interview, the answers, and your personal reactions. This paper is due on 7/21
5. GROUP PROJECT
For this assignment, you will be working with 2 or 3 of your classmates. You will be randomly assigned to
your group. I will post a list of the groups on KUAIS by the end of our third class. This project will involve a
30-45 min. in class presentation on “therapy with a specific population or a specific issue” and a handbook that
you will prepare as a group. You will educate the class on ‘your population/topic’. Also be prepared to answer
questions on the topic. Please see the instructions for your group project.
6. EXAMS/TEST POLICY
It is expected that students take the exams on the scheduled dates and times. Students will be allowed to take a
make-up examination if they provide documentation illustrating that they had an excused absence. Absences
are excused only when documentation of illness, loss of family member, or religious holiday is presented to the
instructor within 2 days of the absence. No other reasons (such as planned travel, oversleeping, etc.) will be
accepted for make-up exams. If the student does not take the mid-term exam within one week of the scheduled
exam date, 25 points per day, beginning on the 8th day, will be deducted from the students exam score. Also,
please note these two important points:
 If you arrive tardy to an exam, and a peer has already completed the exam and left the classroom, you
will not be permitted to take the exam.
 Make-up exams will most likely to be in essay format.
Expectations for Assignments
All assignments should be typed and free of grammatical and spelling errors. Assignments should follow all
guidelines outlined on the assignment instructions. Points will be deducted if these expectations are not met.
All assignments are to be turned in during class on the day they are due, unless specified otherwise on the
assignment sheet. Assignments will be accepted early if you have an excuse. Failure to turn assignments in
early or during class will result in loss of points. Five points will be deducted for each business day (Monday
through Friday) the assignment is late unless otherwise specified on this syllabus or assignment sheet.
GRADING
In conjunction with university policy, students will be graded on the plus/minus grading system. There are no
grades of A+, F + or F-, the following categories are established.
Letter Grade
Percentage
%
Points
A
92-100
184-200
A-
90-91
180-183
B+
88-89
176-179
B
82-87
164-175
B-
80-81
160-163
C+
78-79
156-159
C
72-77
144-155
C-
70-71
140-143
D+
68-69
136-139
D
62-67
124-135
D-
60-61
120-123
F
59 and
below
119 and
below
Tentative Class schedule*
*Class schedule is tentative and is subject to change based on instructor’s assessment of class needs
Date:
Topic:
6/27
Introduction to course; syllabus review
Assignment:
Intro to Marriage and Family Therapy
6/28
MFT History and major concepts
Ch. 1 & 4
6/29
Fundamental concepts
Ch. 4
6/30
Family therapy process and techniques
Ch. 3
7/4
Bowen family systems theory
Ch. 5
7/5
Genogram construction and interpretation
Additional reading:
http://www.genopro.com/genogram/
and read the following links on the
right hand side:
1) Genogram symbols
2) Genogram rules
3) Family relationships
4) Emotional relationships
5) Social relationships
7/6
Structural family therapy
Ch. 7
7/7
Experiential family therapy
Ch. 8
Family Genogram and Reaction
Paper are due IN CLASS
7/11
Cognitive-Behavior Family therapy
Ch. 10
7/12
MIDTERM
MIDTERM
7/13
Solution Focused Therapy
Ch. 12
7/14
Narrative Therapy
Ch. 13
7/18
Common Factors in MFT
Additional reading
7/19
Working with children and play therapy
7/20
Common issues working with couples
7/21
Common issues in therapy
Ch. 15
Interview assignment due
7/25
In-class group presentations
7/26
In-class group presentations
7/27
Final Exam
Final Exam
7/28
Wrap up
Have a great rest of the summer!