Structural Therapy Essay Example
Structural Therapy Essay Example

Structural Therapy Essay Example

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  • Pages: 2 (452 words)
  • Published: June 6, 2018
  • Type: Case Study
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In 1975, Minuchin resigned as clinic director but continued to be the head of training until 1981. Like other family therapy theorists, Salvador Minuchin created his own approach to family therapy called structural family therapy (SFT). SFT uses a distinctive systems terminology and visual representation to illustrate important family elements. Minuchin's main emphasis is on the family's structure, which includes its different substructures.

The author believes in the systems and communication theory, as his structures are determined by transactions among interconnected systems within the family. He agrees with the systems concepts of wholeness and equifinality, which are crucial to his idea of change. It is important to note that in Structural Family Therapy (SFT), the therapist actively becomes part of the family system in order to facilitate positive change. The therapist aims to join with the family at an ea

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rly stage in the therapeutic relationship.

Minuchin defines a family as functional or dysfunctional based on how well it adapts to different stressors, which can be external, unique to the family, or related to development. The family's ability to adapt depends on the clarity and suitability of its subsystem boundaries. These boundaries can range from being overly fused (enmeshment) to having some permeability to being rigid. Furthermore, family subsystems have a power hierarchy, with the parental subsystem typically having more authority compared to the offspring subsystem.

In healthy families, parents and children have clear yet somewhat flexible boundaries. This allows them to work together and negotiate their parenting methods and goals. Although the parents maintain some authority, they are not overly involved in their children's lives, allowing for independent interactions with siblings and peers, which

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promotes socialization. However, the parents are still available to provide support, nurture, and guidance to their children.

On the other hand, dysfunctional families have mixed subsystems and improper power hierarchies. For example, when a spouse is absent, an older child may be brought into the parental subsystem to fill that role.

Minuchin's objective is to encourage a restructuring of the family system towards healthier dynamics. He achieves this by intervening in various family subsystems and creating upheavals that necessitate change and reorganization within the family. Therapeutic change is only possible when existing frames of reference are modified, flexibility is introduced, and new ways of functioning are developed.

In order to expedite this change, Minuchin alters the format of therapy sessions. This involves segregating desired subsystems from the rest of the family by using space, seating arrangements, or having non-members of the desired substructure observe from behind a one-way mirror. The goal of these interventions is typically to disrupt the balance within the family system, enabling them to recognize dysfunctional patterns and be receptive to restructuring.

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