Ch 13 Structural Family Therapy Flashcards Preview

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Flashcards in Ch 13 Structural Family Therapy Deck (29)
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1
Q

11 Disequilibrium Techniques of Structural Family Therapy

A
Reframing 
Punctuation 
Unbalancing 
Enactment 
Working with spontaneous interaction 
Boundary making 
Intensity 
Restructuring
Shaping competence 
Diagnosing 
Adding cognitive constructions
2
Q

accommodation

A

a process of joining in which the therapist makes personal adjustments to achieve a therapeutic alliance with a family.

3
Q

adding cognitive constructions

A

the verbal component of structural family therapy, which consists of advice, information, pragmatic fictions, and paradox.

4
Q

alignments

A

the ways in which family members join together or oppose one another in carrying out a family activity.

5
Q

clear boundaries

A

rules and habits that allow and encourage dialogue and thus help family members to enhance their communication and relationships with one another.

6
Q

coalition

A

an alliance between specific family members against a third member.

7
Q

complementarity

A

the degree of harmony or reciprocity in the meshing of family roles

8
Q

confirmation of a family member

A

a process that uses a feeling word to reflect an expressed or unexpressed feeling of that family member or a nonjudgmental description of the behavior of the individual.

9
Q

cross-generational alliance (coalition)

A

an inappropriate family alliance that contains members of two different generations within it—for example, a parent and child.

10
Q

detouring coalition

A

a coalition in which a pair holds a third family member responsible for their difficulties or conflicts with one another.

11
Q

diffuse boundaries

A

arrangements that do not allow enough separation between family members, resulting in some members becoming fused and dependent on other members.

12
Q

dysfunctional sets

A

the family reactions, developed in response to stress, that are repeated without modification whenever there is family conflict.

13
Q

family structure

A

“the invisible set of functional demands that organizes the ways in which family members interact” (Minuchin, 1974, p. 51).

14
Q

Institute for Family Counseling

A

an early intervention program at the Philadelphia Child Guidance Center for community paraprofessionals that proved to be highly effective in providing mental health services to the poor.

15
Q

intensity

A

the structural method of changing maladaptive transactions by having the therapist use strong affect, repeated intervention, or prolonged pressure with a family.

16
Q

mimesis

A

a way of joining in which the therapist becomes like the family in the manner or content of their communications—for example, when a therapist jokes with a jovial family.

17
Q

parental subsystem

A

the subsystem made up of those responsible for the care, protection, and socialization of children.

18
Q

pragmatic fictions

A

pronouncements that help families and family members change, such as when a therapist tells children that they are acting younger than their years.

19
Q

punctuation

A

the way a person describes a situation, that is, beginning and ending a sentence, due to a selective per-ception or emotional involvement in an event.

20
Q

restructuring

A

changing the structure of the family. The rationale behind restructuring is to make the family more functional by altering the existing hierarchy and interaction patterns.

21
Q

rigid boundaries

A

inflexible rules and habits that keep family members separated from each other.

22
Q

shaping competence

A

the procedure in which structural family therapists help families and family members become more functional by highlighting positive behaviors.

23
Q

sibling subsystem

A

the unit within the family whose members are of the same generation, for example, brothers and sisters. The concept of sibling position is important in both Adlerian and Bowen family therapy.

24
Q

spousal subsystem

A

the subsystem composed of marriage partners.

25
Q

stable coalition

A

a fixed and inflexible union (such as that of a mother and son) that becomes a dominant part of a family’s everyday functioning.

26
Q

subsystems

A

smaller units of the system as a whole, usually composed of members in a family who because of age or function are logically grouped together, such as parents. They exist to carry out various family tasks.

27
Q

triangulation

A

projection of interpersonal dyadic difficulties onto a third person or object (i.e., a scapegoat).

28
Q

unbalancing

A

therapeutically allying with a subsystem. In this procedure, the therapist supports an individual or sub-system against the rest of the family.

29
Q

working with spontaneous interaction

A

the spotlighting by a therapist of attention on some particular disruptive or dysfunctional behavior. On such occasions, therapists can point out the dynamics and sequencing of behaviors and focus on the process. Such occasions are used to help families recognize patterns of interaction and what changes they might make to bring about modification.