Blog Posts Across MFT Exam Review

Integrative Couples Therapy 01

History

1969 Richard Stuart introduced behavioral elements into couples therapy.
1970s couples therapy was based on behavioral change.
As couples theories evolved, behavior and adjustment techniques used to adjust social skills were introduced.
1980s communication skills became and integral part of the healthy functioning couple
Couples therapy began to incorporate family intervention elements in addition to behavioral elements and communication skills building.… Continue

Posted by Dr. Linton Hutchinson on August 2, 2007 at 4:48pm — No Comments

Family Life Cycle Stages

Stages

1. Married Couples without children
2. Child bearing families
3. Families with pre-school children
4. Families with school children
5. Families with teenagers
6. Families launching young adults
7. Middle aged parents- empty nest to retirement
8. Aging Family members- retirement to death of both spouses

Family Stage impact on Problems

Vertical Stressors
o Relational patterns that are transmitted from one generation to another… Continue

Posted by Dr. Linton Hutchinson on August 2, 2007 at 4:48pm — No Comments

Risk factors for and patterns of abuse

Recognizing sings of abuse

In the child:
o Sudden changes in behavior or school performance
o Not medical attention for problems brought to parents attention.
o Learning problems, difficulty concentrating, that cannot be attributed to specific disabilities.
o Tends to be watchful, expecting something to happen.
o Lacks adult supervision.
o Overly compliant, passive, or withdrawn.
o Comes to school or other activities early, stays late, does not want to… Continue

Posted by Dr. Linton Hutchinson on June 18, 2007 at 3:01pm — No Comments

Codes of ethics

Ethics= the study of what constitutes good and bad human conduct, including related actions and values. Ethical practice by a therapist is when a therapist has good moral sense, follows the code of ethics, is up to date on the existing laws that impact their clients, and have good clinical expertise.

Professional code of ethics functions
Define the role of the profession
o Codes express dominant morality of the field
o Define values and goals of the profession.
o Define… Continue

Posted by Dr. Linton Hutchinson on June 18, 2007 at 3:00pm — No Comments

Imago Couple's Therapy 01

What is Imago?
Latin word for image
An unconscious profile of positive and negative traits in a partner.

Goals of Therapy
To align our conscious mind (which usually wants happiness and good feelings) with the agenda of the unconscious mind (which wants healing and growth).
Assist clients in developing conscious, intimate, and committed relationships
Heal each others childhood wounds
Teach clients to call each other back to original wholeness.
Help clients to… Continue

Posted by Dr. Linton Hutchinson on June 18, 2007 at 2:54pm — No Comments

Foundations of Marital and Family Therapy

1940

Theodore Lidz
Study of families of schizophrenics
Introduced concepts of
Schism= division of family into two antagonistic and competing groups.
Skew= one partner in marriage dominates the family as a result of serious personality disorder in one of the partners.

1950

Nathan Ackerman
The Psychodynamics of Family Life
Began treating client mental disorders through family process dynamics.

Gregory Bateson
Formulated controver… Continue

Posted by Dr. Linton Hutchinson on June 18, 2007 at 2:53pm — No Comments

General Systems Theory

Developed by Ludwig von Bertalanffy in 1968.
Explains how organisms thrive or die in accordance with their openness or closedness to their environments.
Focus changed from linear causality to circular causality- idea that events are related through a series of interacting loops or repeating cycles.

System
Set of elements standing in interaction.
Each element is affected by whatever happens to any other element.
System is only as strong as its weakest part.
Syste… Continue

Posted by Dr. Linton Hutchinson on June 18, 2007 at 2:52pm — No Comments

History of the marital and family therapy field

o Emergence of focus on making changes in total life systems.
o Focus on the relationships rather than on the elements themselves.
o Began due to dramatic change in the form, composition, and structure of the American family (single parents, blended families, dual-career families).
o Because interconnectedness exists among family members, actions of the members affect the health or dysfunctional of each individual and family as a whole.
o Organism= form of life composed of mutual… Continue

Posted by Dr. Linton Hutchinson on June 18, 2007 at 2:51pm — No Comments

Sexual abuse treatment for victims, perpetrators, and their families

Sexual assault is a traumatic event from which many victims never fully recover. Victims often develop problems with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, poor self-esteem, interpersonal difficulties, and sexual disorders. PTSD is overwhelmingly the most common disorder related to sexual abuse.

Children may have some symptoms that are different from adults such as agitated behavior, repetitive play involving trauma, frightening non-specific dreams, and reenactment of the t… Continue

Posted by Dr. Linton Hutchinson on June 18, 2007 at 12:57pm — No Comments

Risk factors, stages and patterns of grief response

• DSM Diagnosis under Other Conditions That May be Focus of Clinical Attention, V62.82, Bereavement- used for death of a loved one.
• Depression in this case is considered “normal” but individual my be seeking treatment to relieve symptoms such as insomnia or anorexia.
• Expression of “normal” bereavement time is relative to different cultures.
• Major Depressive disorder is not diagnosed unless symptoms last longer than two months after loss.

Stages of Grief:
• Denial… Continue

Posted by Dr. Linton Hutchinson on June 18, 2007 at 12:57pm — No Comments

Divorce

The diagnosis typically assigned for clients and families dealing with divorce is depression. The symptoms are usually the same for children, adolescents, and adults.

Symptoms:
• Persistent sadness
• Inability to enjoy favorite activities
• Increased irritability
• Physical problems such as headaches and stomach aches
• Poor school performance
• Poor work performance
• Persistent boredom
• Low energy
• Poor concentration
• Changes in eating and o… Continue

Posted by Dr. Linton Hutchinson on June 18, 2007 at 12:52pm — No Comments

Intimacy Based Therapy- David Schnarch 01

What is Intimacy Based Therapy?

* Belief that marriage is a “people growing” machine
* Belief that sexual expression holds the highest potential for personal integrity and differentiation
* Supports expression of eroticism and deals positively with the anxiety of disconnection
* Belief in learning to develop sexual potential and intimacy

What is a crucible?
A vessel made of a refractory substance such as graphite or porcelain, used for melting materials at high… Continue

Posted by Dr. Linton Hutchinson on June 18, 2007 at 12:19pm — No Comments

Emotional Focused Couple Therapy 01

Emotional Focused Couples Therapy 01

Introduction

Emotion is the music of the dance between partners, learn to change the music and change the dance.

What is EFT?

• EFT expands experience and interactions.
• It is the accessing and reprocessing of emotional response underlying partner’s interactional position. The reprocessing of inner experience is used to expand the interpersonal context. In turn the structuring of new interactional events expands and r… Continue

Posted by Dr. Linton Hutchinson on June 18, 2007 at 12:13pm — No Comments

Non-Standardized Assessment Tests

Non-Standardized Assessment Tests

Genograms

* First developed and popularized in clinical settings by Monica McGoldrick and Randy Gerson.
* Developed principally within the context of Murray Bowen’s intergenerational family systems theory, genograms offer an efficient and effective process for explaining repetitive behaviors and patterns.
* Essentially, genograms are graphic representations of an individual’s extended family that typically cross at least three generatio… Continue

Posted by Dr. Linton Hutchinson on June 8, 2007 at 10:31am — No Comments