Robert Allan

Conceptual and application issues: Emotionally Focused Therapy with gay male couples.

ABSTRACT Therapists working with couples are likely to see gay male couples in their practice yet there is a lack of training to prepare therapists to work with gay couples. Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) is an empirically supported approach to couples therapy and offers a clear structure and map for working with gay male couples. This article reviews some of the issues that are specific to EFT work with gay men. Given the range of minority stressors that gay men contend with EFT is particularly appropriate for work with gay male couples because of the focus on the attachment bond. Building a secure relationship is an important source of resilience that can buffer against prejudice and discrimination and provide a secure base for individual and couple exploration.

The use of interpretive phenomenological analysis in couple and family therapy research

This article proposes a research methodology that is newer to the field of couple and family therapy (CFT) research called interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA). Researchers exploring CFT research continue to establish the efficacy of couple and family interventions in a context that favors a positivist view of phenomena. This research continues to be critical for establishing the role of CFT in the field of mental health as well as further clarifying which interventions are best for specific clinical issues and when. IPA offers researchers the opportunity to explore how couples and families make meaning of their experiences from an intersubjective perspective. Meaning making is central to understanding couples and families as well as part of the many clinical approaches to working with couples and families. Despite the importance of meaning, few research methodologies allow for this central concept in CFT to be the focus of exploration. The following article outlines one such methodology and the possible use of IPA in CFT research.

“I had no idea this shame piece was in me”: Couple and Family Therapists' Experience with Learning an Evidence-Based Practice

Abstract This study reports on the experience of shame while learning an evidence-based approach to working with couples or families. Couple and family therapists were interviewed about their experience with learning and using an evidence-based practice (EBP) and the data was analyzed using a phenomenological approach called interpretative phenomenological analysis. The theme of shame emerged from a number of research participants as part of their development with the EBP they were integrating into their practice. Starting with an exploration of the participants’ experiences and the impact of shame, the paper will then link these experiences with the psychological and sociological research literature about shame.

Evidence-Based Practices and Cultural Responsiveness

This chapter will provide a review of the guidelines for evidence-based practices (EBP) and some of the strengths and challenges associated with the EBP project. EBPs have become a part of the research and clinical landscape for couple and family therapists. Developing evidence-based practices is seen as a natural progression of our field, a maturing of sorts from anecdotal clinical reports to conceptual and methodological sophistication of couple and family therapy research and clinical practices. The challenges associated with integrating science into the practice of therapy through EBPs have always been controversial, resulting in frequent, passionate, and at times divisive debates in the field. While the EBP guidelines established by Division 43 of the American Psychological Association reference “contextual efficacy” at the third and most advanced level for determining an EBP, little is known about how this translates to cultural responsiveness. This chapter will first clarify what the current guidelines are and explore how the fields of couple and family research have explored culture.

The Future of MFT: Clinical Implications of Cross-Cultural Responsiveness and Social Justice Lens to the Field

In our final chapter of this volume, we summarize the information from our contributors’ chapters and provide an overview of the future of the field of marriage and family therapy (MFT) and the continued need for attention to cross-cultural responsiveness and social justice. We bring together the overall themes of the book and how each of the authors has contributed to these themes as well as to the larger implications and conclusions we can draw regarding the future of systemic therapies and multiculturalism.

Culture in Clinical Supervision: Research and Evidence

This chapter provides a review of the varied research that explores how to address culture in supervision and the experiences of supervisors and supervisees when they deal with culture in supervision. It is part of a larger systematic review of the supervision literature. The research about supervision is primarily survey-based and case studies. The main themes that emerge from this research are outlined here and best practices are outlined.

Attachment Theory and Gay Male Relationships: A Scoping Review

ABSTRACT The purpose of this project was to explore the attachment-related research for gay male couples. We conducted a scoping study that included a search in 9 academic databases for related research that first identified over 17,000 articles and were distilled down to 55 articles for the full review included here. Qualitative content analysis was used to identify emergent themes related to attachment theory and gay male relationships. The results are summarized, areas for further research are identified, and practice implications are suggested.