Systems of Family and Marital Psychotherapy

Fülszöveg

SYSTEMS OF FAMILY AND
MARITAL PSYCHOTHERAPY
The burgeoning interest in conjoint family psycho-
therapy reflects the peculiarly central, crucial posi-
tion of the family, which faces both inward to the
individual and outward to society. In this field, which
is growing rapidly in many directions, this valuable
volume not only integrates the various main theories,
but presents the author's application of systems
theory to family therapy, with ample practical
guidance and detailed clinical examples.
In Part One on Concepts, Dr. Skynner first presents
fundamental concepts of general systems theory and
outlines a composite developmental scheme. He then
brings together object relations theory and other
psychoanalytic constructs with role-playing theories
and modeling concepts from behavior modification
in preparation for the application of these principles
to the institutions of marriage and the family. Through
a description of his approach and numerous cases, the... Tovább

Fülszöveg

SYSTEMS OF FAMILY AND
MARITAL PSYCHOTHERAPY
The burgeoning interest in conjoint family psycho-
therapy reflects the peculiarly central, crucial posi-
tion of the family, which faces both inward to the
individual and outward to society. In this field, which
is growing rapidly in many directions, this valuable
volume not only integrates the various main theories,
but presents the author's application of systems
theory to family therapy, with ample practical
guidance and detailed clinical examples.
In Part One on Concepts, Dr. Skynner first presents
fundamental concepts of general systems theory and
outlines a composite developmental scheme. He then
brings together object relations theory and other
psychoanalytic constructs with role-playing theories
and modeling concepts from behavior modification
in preparation for the application of these principles
to the institutions of marriage and the family. Through
a description of his approach and numerous cases, the
author links marital patterns and pathology with
family problems and developmental arrest in children.
As is evident to many family therapists, it is often
necessary to intervene in the pathological dynamics
of both the family and the marital couple. Part One
further considers the meaning of pathology and
motivation within the wider social network, espe-
cially among disadvantaged and delinquent families.
Part Two on Application offers detailed guidance
to the practitioner and explicates the process of con-
joint family psychotherapy—when the therapist
(alone or with a co-therapist) sees all family members
or, in the case of marital psychotherapy, both the
husband and wife together. The author explores the
process in various settings, including couples' and
multifamily groups, and with different problems, par-
ticularly school phobia. An outline of the different
schools of family therapy is followed by explanations
of the author's techniques, enriched by many case
illustrations, which reveal the therapist as a significant
and active component in the work at hand rather than
a detached authority. Other issues considered in this
Part include interviewing techniques, principles of
selection and variations of technique, implications of
co-therapy, and results of therapy.
(continued on back thip) Vissza