The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of an intensive version of the Landreth (2002) 10-week filial therapy model as a method of intervention for children of Israeli parents living in Israel. This study was designed to determine the effectiveness of intensive filial therapy training in (a) reducing internalizing behavior problems of Israeli children; (b) reducing externalizing behavior problems of Israeli children; and (c) reducing overall behavior problems of Israeli children. A second purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of intensive filial therapy training with Israeli parents in increasing the parents' (a) empathic responsiveness with their children; (b) communication of acceptance to their children; (c) allowance of self-direction by their children; (d) involvement in their children's play activities; (e) feelings of efficacy as parents; and (f) reduction of parental stress. The experimental group consisted of fourteen Israeli children who their parents received nine intensive Filial Therapy training sessions within a five week period and had seven parent-child play sessions. The non-treatment comparison group consisted of thirteen Israeli children whose parents received no treatment. Parents in the study completed the Hebrew version of the Child Behavior Checklist, the Parenting Stress Index, and conducted pre-test and post-test play sessions for the Measurement of Empathy in Adult-Child Interaction. Multivariate Analysis of Covariance revealed the children in the experimental group significantly reduced external behavior problems. The results also revealed the parents in the experimental group significantly reduced parental stress and significantly increased communication of empathy to their children.

This study examined how current family counseling/therapy programs train students to work with families with young children and made recommendations for training in this area based on recommendations of child and family therapy experts and the research and clinical literature. These recommendations explored what knowledge and skills all students should acquire versus students who want to specialize with this population. Changes to accreditation standards were also proposed as well as a description of resources to support changes in program curricula. Current training was measured by examining curricula from master's level marriage and family counseling/therapy programs accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE) and the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Education Programs (CACREP) and master's level social work programs with a family-related concentration accredited by the Council on Social Work Education Commission on Accreditation (CSWE), the accreditation standards from these three organizations, course syllabi from the COAMFTE and CACREP programs, and surveys of COAMFTE and CACREP program directors (60% response rate). Recommendations for training were obtained through a qualitative analysis of quotations from the literature concerning training and through interviews of child and family therapy experts (65% response rate). The results revealed the number of courses recommended by the literature and experts was much greater than the number of child-related courses per program and a great variety of textbooks were used. Accreditation standards also required little child-related course material. The on-campus clinics had low percentages of child-related facilities but high percentages of child-related resources. The results also showed the experts recommended much greater percentages of experiential activities than were required by the programs. Finally, a much larger percentage of experts than program directors agreed that accreditation standards should be changed to include more child-related courses.

This investigation was concerned with determining the effectiveness of filial therapy as a method of intervention for families of children with pervasive developmental disorders.

This study was designed to determine the effectiveness of filial therapy as a method of intervention for single parents and their children.

This investigation was designed to determine the relationships among single parents' parental stress, empathy, level of acceptance, perception of child problems, and child gender, and the effect of filial therapy training on these relationships. Filial therapy is a parent training approach utilized by play therapists to train parents to be therapeutic agents of change with their own children using child-centered play therapy skills. Parents are taught and given support in a group format. Data from a previous filial therapy study with single parents was utilized in this investigation. Correlational research methods were employed to examine the relationships among the variables measured. Correlation coefficients were obtained between each of the following five variables: parental stress, level of acceptance, empathy, perceived problems of the child, and child gender. Additionally, multiple and logistic regression was utilized in search of a possible predictive model. Significant correlations were found between parental stress and acceptance, parental stress and perception of child problems, parental empathy and acceptance, parental empathy and perception of child problems, and between parental acceptance and perception of child problems. No significant correlations were found between child gender and any of the variables. Significant correlation changes were found in several of the measured variables (from pre- to post-) due to the filial therapy intervention. Regression analysis indicated that parental acceptance was predictive of parental empathy, parental empathy was predictive of parental acceptance, and parental stress was predictive of parental perception of problems. No significant findings of prediction were obtained with child gender. This study supports filial therapy as an effective intervention with single parents, as well as the appropriateness of the assessment instruments commonly used in filial therapy research. The results of this research provide insight into those areas of the parent-child relationship impacted by filial therapy, as well as the relationships between the variables measured.

[pt] A psicoterapia com famílias em situações de vulnerabilidade envolve muitas dificuldades, pois inclui a complexidade do trabalho com múltiplos vínculos associada às precariedades inerentes às vivências de desamparo e de violência em diferentes níveis. Visando produzir conhecimentos nesse campo, de modo a consubstanciar a prática clínica com o grupo familiar, o objetivo deste trabalho foi investigar os padrões vinculares predominantes em famílias em situações de vulnerabilidade, buscando pensar alguns dos desafios e limitações da psicoterapia de família. Para tal, foi realizada uma investigação clínicoqualitativa, a partir do método de estudo de casos, ambos interrompidos precocemente pelas famílias. Foi proposta uma análise a partir de algumas das principais contribuições psicanalíticas sobre os vínculos, dentre as quais estão as de Bion e Pichon-Rivière, além das postulações teóricas sobre a noção de duplovínculo da Teoria Sistêmica. Foi observado que os vínculos familiares eram marcados por antiemoções e situações de duplo-vínculo. Identificou-se que, por vezes, uma interrupção precoce do tratamento não significa necessariamente o fracasso da psicoterapia em família. Nos casos pesquisados, foi possível compreender que o tratamento alcançou sua função de escuta e de espaço de reflexão, dadas as limitações das qualidades dos vínculos, específicas de cada família. / [en] Psychotherapy with families in situations of vulnerability involves many difficulties, as it includes the complexity of working with multiple links associated with the precariousness inherent to the experiences of helplessness and violence at different levels. Aiming to produce knowledge in this field, in order to substantiate clinical practice with the family group, the objective of this work was to investigate the linking patterns prevalent in families in situations of vulnerability, developing thoughts about some of the challenges and limitations of family psychotherapy. To this end, a qualitative clinical investigation was carried out, using the case study method, both interrupted early by the families. An analysis was proposed based on some of the main psychoanalytic contributions on the links, among which are those of Bion and Pichon-Rivière, in addition to the theoretical postulations on the notion of double-bind of the Systemic Theory. It was observed that family bonds were marked by anti-emotions and double-bind situations. It was found that sometimes an early interruption of treatment does not necessarily mean the failure of family psychotherapy. In the researched cases, it was possible to understand that the treatment reached its function of listening and space for reflection, given the limitations of the qualities of the links, specific to each family.

The stated purpose of this research project was: 1. to provide a consensus definition of "religious orientation" as the term is currently being used by Marriage and Family therapists familiar with religious families. 2. to identify and prioritize clinicians' perceptions regarding the effects of religious orientation on "Well Family" functioning, both positively and negatively. 3. to develop descriptions of clinicians’ perceptions of dimensions of behavior which can be employed beneficially in marriage and family therapy with religiously-oriented families. In order to address those areas of inquiry, a Delphi methodology was employed, polling marriage and family therapists familiar with Religious Orientation in clinical practice, research and supervisory contexts. This research design is one which is useful in exploratory studies, following the data rather than attempting evaluate a preconceived hypothesis. Open-ended questions generated the initial data base which was subsequently refined and clarified through recursive re-evaluation of each suggested characteristic by the participant-panelists. The final profiles included only those characteristics identified as important or very important by at least 80% of the participants when describing the attributes under consideration. This study suggests that Religious Orientation can be a healthy, stabilizing, life-enhancing perspective about which many individuals and families organize their lives and experience. This study has identified and distinguished between many specific characteristics of both healthy and unhealthy Religious Orientation for individuals and families. Assets of Religious Orientation to the therapeutic process and well-family functioning were also specifically identified. The general omission of Religious Orientation from marriage and family therapy training, supervision and research was addressed from historical and epistemological perspectives. Recommendations for inclusion of Religious Orientation as a significant paradigm were offered, as were recommendations for further research. / Ph. D.

Understanding and prediction of children's adaptation to loss requires attention to family characteristics and interpersonal patterns in addition to individual variables. Empirical inquiries into family variables have indicated that the concepts of cohesion and expressiveness in particular may be useful in explaining members' adjustment. Using both deductive and inductive methods this study developed a reliable behavioral coding system for observing family members as they described the story of a child's death. The study also examined the relationship of these observable behaviors to both self-reports of cohesion and expressiveness and measures of individual adjustment. In terms of convergent validity the Expressiveness subscale of the Family Environment Scale (Moos & Moos, 1986) was more readily associated with observable behaviors than was the Cohesion subscale. Discriminant validity was not established, however, and possible explanations for this were discussed. Examination of criterion-related and predictive validity demonstrated the uti1ity of both se1f-report and behavioral measures of cohesion and expressiveness in accounting for parental depression, child behavior problems, and other specific indicators of distress. Implications for clinical intervention with bereaved families were discussed. / Ph. D.

Intermittent business travel has become an essential part of professional life for many. This exploratory study focused on two types of business-related travel. Short-term travel included frequent trips which lasted a week or less. Long-term travel included trips which lasted a minimum of three weeks at a time. Twenty couples, in which the husband was the business traveler, completed questionnaires and were interviewed individually. The Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scales-FACES III (Olson, Portner, & Lavee, 1985) was used to measure couple functioning. No significant differences on either adaptability or cohesion were found between the two groups of business travel couples. The couples in this study reported a significantly higher level of adaptability when the mean score on the adaptability scale of each of these two groups was compared with the mean score of the sample upon which FACES III was normed (p <.0001). Significant group differences were reported on the ways the couples dealt with the eminent departure of the husband, the couples’ adjustment when the husbands returned, the stress resulting from travel reported by the husbands, and the amount of contact the couples had while the husbands were away. Methods of coping used by husbands and wives and support systems used by the wives were also explored. Implications of the findings and suggestions for further research are included. / Master of Science

When adolescents enter residential treatment for difficulties experienced at school, with the juvenile justice system and/or their parent(s)r substance abuse is often not identified as a significant contributor to the presenting problem. However, the dynamics of adolescent substance abuse are described in the literature as interactive processes affected by family dysfunctions, inadequately learned coping skills and significant stressors. In this study, a treatment strategy was developed for families of adolescents in a residential treatment center setting, where adolescents, along with other identified problems were also determined to be actively abusing drugs and or alcohol. The treatment strategies focused on alcohol/drug abuse as a primary problem, and on relapse prevention through psycho education, family therapy and contingency contracting. Twelve adolescents and their families participated in the treatment program. A one year follow up was conducted. This thesis reports on four of these families indepth through the use of case studies. Comparisons and conclusions were drawn from the case studies which demonstrate that the treatment model is an effective auxiliary modality for use with substance abusing adolescents and their families. / Master of Science