Study-Unit Description

Study-Unit Description


CODE FSD5102

 
TITLE Application of Family Therapy Techniques

 
UM LEVEL 05 - Postgraduate Modular Diploma or Degree Course

 
MQF LEVEL 7

 
ECTS CREDITS 5

 
DEPARTMENT Child and Family Studies

 
DESCRIPTION The students will be grouped into 2, each group with one tutor. A theoretical overview will be delivered, highlighting the core concepts, skills needed and techniques of the selected family therapy model. The students will be encouraged to participate and discuss with the tutor the relevant contexts, where these ideas can be applied. They will need to take a reflexive stance and apply these ideas to their own professional and personal life experiences.

The theories examined will include the early, first order models such as Structural Model, Strategic and early Milan Model, the second order approaches such as the Post-Milan therapy, Narrative and Brief Solution Focused Models.

The post modern concepts and social constructionist ideas are also explored.
A strong emphasis will also be placed on self-reflexive practice which will include refections on gender, sexual orientation, racial and cultural differences and perspectives.

Study-unit Aims

The aims of this study-unit are:

1. to help students to foster reflexive practice between the personal and professional issues;
2. to assist students in starting to develop a wider, more complex view of the different family situations within the context of their culture, religion, gender and class issues;
3. to provide the opportunity to students to learn to explore and understand that they are part of the system they are working with and that they both influence and are influenced by the families they work with;
4. to help students grow further in their personal and professional development, and learn to appreciate how this will impact their therapeutic relationships with families they work with.

Learning Outcomes

1. Knowledge & Understanding:
By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to:

1. demonstrate an understanding and consolidate the theoretical ideas and models;
2. apply these ideas to their professional and personal life;
3. develop skills competence in wider contexts, such as working with families, work agencies and different client groups;
4. accept and give knowledgeable feedback;
5. work and understand the emotional content of work with different family members;
6. take an ethical non-judgemental and curious therapeutic stance;
7. hold on to ones' ideas and be open to others;
8. demonstrate an understanding and hold the views and positions of the different family members and their complexities;
9. comprehend issues of power both within the family they are working with and within the therapeutic relationship.

2. Skills:
By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to:

a. hold a therapeutic stance;
b. interview two and more family members together;
c hold an impartial and curious position;
d. shift from cause and effect to a circular thinking;
e. participate in self-reflexive practice through the skill of taking a meta-position and linking ones' thinking to the conversations in the room with the family;
f. apply the early model's techniques,which include engagement, re-enactment, hypothesizing and circular questioning;
g. work in a team through consultation and collaborative working.

Main Text/s and any supplementary readings:

- Abela, A.M. (2000). Values of women and men in the Maltese Islands. Malta: Discern Publishers.
- Abela,A. & Fenech,C. (2011)The relevance of the Maltese Catholic Church in the context of current changes in contemporary Maltese families in Faith in Pluralistic Malta.
- Abela, A. & Tabone C. (2008) Family Poverty and Social Exclusion with a special emphasis on Children Research on the Family Series No 1.
- Baldachino, G. (1993). Social class in Malta: insights into a homegrown relationship with special reference to education. Journal of Education. 5, 23-32. 1993.

Main Text:

- Carr, A. (2001) Family Therapy; Concepts, Process and Practice. New York: John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
- Carr, A. (2009) The effectiveness of family therapy and systemic interventions for child-focused problems. Journal of Family Therapy, 31, (1) 3-45.
- Confetti, R. (1999). Race and culture working party : Sowing the seeds of cultural competence: Family therapy training for a multi-ethnic society. Context 44.
- Dallos, R., & Draper, R. (2000). Introduction to Family Therapy. London: Open.
- Dallos, R. (2003) Using Narrative and Attachment Theory in Systemic Family Therapy with Eating Disorders, Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, Vol. 8(4): 521–535.
- Etchison, M. & Kleist, D. M. (2000) Review of Narrative Therapy: Research and Utility. The Family Journal: Counseling and Therapy for Couples and Families, 8, 61-66.
- Flaskas, C. (2002) Family Therapy Beyond Postmodernism: Practice Challenges Theory, Hove, Brunner-Routledge. (Especially Chapters 7, 8, 9 and 10).
- Frendo, M. (2009) ‘The Influence of Religion on Maltese Society: Past and Present’, in Farrugia, M. (ed.) Hide and Seek: Reflections on Faith and Culture in Dialogue, MKSU/APS Bank.
- Guanaes, C. & Rasera, E. F (2006) Therapy as Social Construction:An Interview with Sheila McNamee Interamerican Journal of Psychology. Vol. 40, Num. 1 pp. 127-136.
- Hare-Mustin, R. T. (1991). Sex, lies and headaches: The problem is power In J. Goodrich (Ed.), Women and power: Perspective for Family Therapy. (pp. 63-85). New York: W.W. Norton.
- Hoffman, L. (1981). *Foundations of Family Therapy: a conceptual framework for systems change (Chapters: Prologue, 2,3,9, 12 –15). New York: Basic Books.
- Krause, B. (Feb 2010) ‘I feel, therefore……”: Being there in systemic psychotherapy. (Context, Issue 107).
- Lips, H.M. (1994). Power in the Family. In H. Gerald, & G.G. Whitchurch (Eds.), The Psychosocial Interior of the Family. (4th Ed.). New York: Aldine De Gruyter.
- Locke, M. (2009) The Hypothesis as Dialogue: An Interview With Paolo Bertrando. Australian and New Zealand Journal of FamilyTherapy, Sep 2009, Vol. 30 Issue 3, p216- 226.
- McGoldrick, M. (1999). Re-visioning Family Therapy. New York: Guildford Press.
- Nichols, M., (2008). Family therapy concepts and methods (8th ed.). Boston: Pearson Education.
- O’Reilly Mizzi, S. (1997).Women of Senglea revisited. Third annual conference anthropology programme.
- Palazzoli, M.S., Boscolo, L., Cecchin, G., & Prata, G. (1980). Hypothesizing-Circularity-Neutrality: Three guidelines for the conductor of the session. Family Process, 19, 3-12.
- Palazzoli, M.S., Boscolo, L., Cecchin, G., & Prata, G. (1980). *The problem of the referring person. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 6, 3 9.
- Selekman, M.D (2006) Untangling family-helping system knots: Facilitating transformative dialogues. (Chapter 5). In M.D. Selekman Working with selfharming adolescents: A collaborative strengths-based therapy approach. New York: W.W. Norton& Company.
- Weingarten, K. (1998). The Small and the ordinary: The daily practice of a postmodern Narrative Therapy. Family Process, 37: 3-15.

 
STUDY-UNIT TYPE Lecture

 
METHOD OF ASSESSMENT
Assessment Component/s Assessment Due Sept. Asst Session Weighting
Logbook SEM2 Yes 100%

 
LECTURER/S Charlotte Busuttil
Joseph Mangion

 

 
The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints.
Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice.
It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2023/4. It may be subject to change in subsequent years.

https://www.um.edu.mt/course/studyunit