Thorana S. Nelson

Gender in family therapy supervision

While gender has taken its place as a fundamental construct in family therapy theory, little has been written about gender in family therapy supervision. This paper attempts to redefine gender as it pertains to families, family therapy, and family therapy supervision; call attention to aspects of gender as they apply to training in family therapy and family therapy supervision; and suggest ways that family therapy supervisors can sensitize themselves to issues of gender so that they can be more effective in supervision.

Videotape supervision via long-distance telephone

Abstract Raw data supervision is an important component in family therapy training. However, it is often difficult to implement, especially for those therapists and supervisors who live a great distance from one another. This article presents a technique for providing videotape supervision via long-distance telephone. It presents the advantages and problems of this technique. Alternative ways of using this procedure also are discussed.

Core Competencies in Advanced Training: What Supervisors Say about Graduate Training.

In an attempt to identify needed mental health skills, many professional organizations have or are in the process of establishing core competency standards for their professions. The AAMFT identified 128 core competencies for the independent practice of MFT. The aim of this study was to learn the opinions of AAMFT Approved Supervisors as to how well prepared postgraduate trainees are when compared to the core competencies. One hundred thirty-five AAMFT Approved Supervisors provided their perspectives on (a) which competencies are most commonly learned in MFT graduate programs, (b) how well the graduates have mastered these competencies, and (c) the level to which the supervisors need the competencies to be mastered prior to entering advanced training. Results suggest that a gap exists between the level of mastery that the postgraduate trainees exhibit and the level desired by supervisors. Implications are suggested for closing this gap.

Admissions Criteria as Predictors of Performance in a Family Therapy Doctoral Program.

Abstract This nine-year study examined the extent to which selected admissions criteria of 34 family therapy doctoral students predicted their future performance on clinical, academic, research, and other job-related criteria. Age and clinical background were positively related to clinical ratings after three years. Letters of recommendation and student autobiographies were positively related to quality and quantity of publications. Graduate Record Examination scores and interview ratings were not predictive of any of the criterion variables at three or six years. Additional findings are presented and discussed.

Couple Therapy and Addictions

Abstract Therapies for alcoholism, substance abuse, and other addictions traditionally focus on characteristics of individuals such as behaviors, thoughts, and emotions. These kinds of programs tend to target problems inside the abusing person rather than a relational system. Treatments that are more recent locate the problems within systems of people. Regardless of the locus or cause of the abuse or addiction, seen as arising from disease processes, systemic dynamics, or other mechanisms that lead to unfortunate habits and behaviors, utilizing the individuals partner or family in therapy has become an important part of successful treatment. This article reviews models of couple treatment for alcoholics and substance abusers in terms of initiation into treatment, primary treatment, and relapse prevention.

Couple Treatment for Drug Abusing Women: Effects on Drug-Use and Need for Treatment

ABSTRACT Both theory and empirical data suggest that womens intimate partner relationships influence their use of drugs and their participation in treatment. In this study, 122 women who sought treatment at two outpatient drug treatment agencies were randomly assigned to one of three treatment conditions. In one couple therapy condition, the women were seen conjointly with their partners. In the second couple therapy condition, the women were seen individually but the focus of the intervention was on their partner relationships. The third group received the standard agency treatment protocol with no couple therapy-a Treatment As Usual (TAU) condition. The Addiction Severity Index (ASI) was used to measure womens drug and alcohol status prior to treatment, at the end of treatment, and at 3 months, 6 months, and 12 months post-treatment. All three groups reduced their scores from pretest to posttest on the ASI Alcohol scale. While there were some differences in mean scores between groups at 3 and 6 months, the groups did not differ at 1 year posttreatment, and had again reached the level they were at posttest. All three groups reduced their mean scores on the ASI Drug Use scale from pre-test to 3-month follow-up. The scores for the TAU group, however, rose significantly after 3 months while the two couples conditions maintained their gains at 6 and 12 months. The findings suggest that including a systemic couple treatment component in outpatient drug treatment for women can improve long-term outcome for drug use although not for alcohol use.

Results of Last Session Interviews in Solution Focused Brief Therapy: Learning from the Clients

Abstract This paper reports the results of analyses of the responses of 91 adult clients who reported that their goals had been reached in therapy. The therapy conducted used the Solution Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) approach developed by de Shazer and colleagues at the Brief Family Therapy Center of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Clients were asked about what was helpful, what would have been more helpful, if the physical arrangements were adequate, how helpful the therapist was, how they would describe the therapy to friends or relatives, whether between-session suggestions were helpful, and whether they would recommend the therapy to a friend or relative. Results suggest that clients found the therapy helpful, had few suggestions for improvement, found the physical arrangements acceptable, described therapy in terms non-specific to SFBT, found the therapists quite helpful, found the suggestions helpful, and would recommend the therapy to others. Limitations and suggestions for further research are discussed.

Couples Therapy with One Partner

Abstract Systemic Couples Therapy (SCT) can be used when only one partner in the couple is attending therapy, whether the partner is unable or unwilling to attend. The model uses integrated components of Structural, Strategic, Bowen Family Systems, Behavioral, and Solution-focused therapies. The philosophy, integrated concepts, and various stages of therapy are illustrated through the case of Amy, a substance abusing woman.

participating in a couples therapy outcome study: Participants' views

Discovering that participants who received therapy in a research project and were being debriefed in a therapy outcome study considered those assessment sessions therapeutic, the authors conclude that participants: (a) are aware of the research context, (b) have some idea about how it affected the treatment they got, and (c) see positive outcomes for taking part in the study. Assessment and treatment were not separated in the minds of some participants, as they had been in the mind of the researchers.

Hiring family therapists for a research project via videotaped interviews: A brief report

The authors describe an interview procedure devised for use in hiring therapists for a research and demonstration project in which the employers viewed videotaped interviews of applicants responding to a standard set of questions posed by an on-site researcher/interviewer. The approach is considered potentially useful for agencies to use in hiring therapists with a systemic orientation.