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This article presents research that explored the ways that systemic and family therapists might approach the support of families living with dementia. A constructivist grounded theory methodology was used to interpret interviews with four systemic family therapists working in the United Kingdom. All participants had professional and/or lived experience of dementia. Transcript analysis and theoretical sampling led to the development of five categories, each related to different aspects of considering systemic therapy in a dementia context. These categories were further developed into a 'systemically informed dementia orienteering' conceptual framework, which is presented in this paper as a learning resource. Findings are related to existing literature, and recommendations for future research are made. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article calls for the submission of annotations, case studies, position statements on theoretical, practical, training or research issues for the short paper section of "Journal of Family Therapy." It notes that contributors should work to an outside limit of 2000 words and should take care that all sources used are correctly quoted, and referencing should follow the conventions currently used by the journal. It points out that there will be a place for shorter papers. It also informs that responses to papers will also be welcomed.

Copyright of Journal of Family Therapy is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

SHIFT has been one of the largest RCTs in the field of systemic family therapy in the UK. The study took place over five years, including three major centres with fifteen Trusts and twenty‐five family therapists who worked with a manualized treatment in CAMHS with adolescents who self‐harmed. While the results are not available at the time of this publication, this paper will briefly describe the pre‐ existing factors which were helpful in developing a successful bid, clinical and managerial elements of ‘real world research’ of complex psychological processes and the construction of the manualized systemic family therapy. It also offers examples of some of the unanticipated events in the life of such a large trial. Practitioner Points: Large trials develop from small studies and clinicians are urged to look for opportunities for research partnershipsInvestment in time for consideration of difficult issues as they arise is essential for effective trial managementThe balance between research rigour and ‘real life’ practice is an inevitable area of tension and requires consideration of both immediate and outcome consequences 尝试和痛苦 – 一种随机对照试验对比下的把干预当作惯常和在实施过程中出现的重要事件上的反思的家庭治疗 人工家庭治疗 摘要: SHIFT目前是英国家庭治疗领域最大的随机对照试验之一。本研究历时5年, 囊括了三个主要的中心在内的15个信托, 25位曾在CAMHS对自残青少年进行人工治疗的家庭治疗师。因为在发表这篇文章的时候, 结果还没有出来, 本文将简短地描述1）有助发展成功bid的已经存在的因素, 2）临床以及管理方面的复杂心理过程的”真实情况研究”元素, 3）以及人工系统家庭治理的建构。本文还提供了生活在这样一种大的的尝试下的一些意想不到事件的例子。 对实践者有用的几点建议: 大的尝试发展自小的研究, 临床工作者急需寻找研究合作者的机会困难事件需要及时解决, 不然就会对有效尝试管理产生重要影响研究活力和”真实生活”实践的平衡是一种不可避免的引起紧张的领域, 这需要对当下和结果的同时考虑 关键词：实证实践, 研究, 儿童和青少年精神健康, 培训 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to provide a description of a significant process which takes place during a first psychiatric hospitalization and to shed some light on its context. This process involves a transformation of an individual considered mentally disturbed into a psychiatric patient which affects the person's identity. The ‘person’ becomes a ‘psychiatric patient’. Although it is self-evident that a patient never stops being a person, the context of the first hospitalization merits attention as it is the time when the patient is in most danger of being objectified and depersonalized. The paper describes a study of forty-six patients hospitalized for the first time on a psychiatric ward and their seventy-five parents. Their narratives from the beginning and the end of stay in hospital were compared and the language used during the introductory consultation and discharge consultation analysed. In this process an important role is played by patients' parents. The parents' narratives are seen to change in a direction of acceptance but at the same time a process of stigmatization is apparent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper will examine aspects of the permeability of time, with a view to exploring our perceptions of ourselves as present–focused distinct individuals. Permeability of time is defined as time’s fluidity, its ability to move across boundaries of past, present and future. Fluidity, in this sense, is our capacity to experience past, present and future simultaneously. Time will be examined from both psychoanalytic and systemic viewpoints. Issues of time and timelessness, consciousness and memory will be raised and the usefulness of working from an affective base discussed. The case cited in the paper is one in which the family was in the stage of having an adolescent child. Adolescence will therefore be discussed as it relates to the issue of time. The clinical discussion will be based on an integration of the two theoretical perspectives as they relate to time and affect. In conclusion I will revisit the question of our perception of ourselves as present–focused distinct individuals within a family context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many of the qualitative research methods developed in the social sciences are well suited to explore research questions pertinent for the systemic field, and make a good fit with systemic thinking. In this paper I briefly outline the value of qualitative research for systemic psychotherapies. I explore some parallel developments in the field of qualitative research and systemic therapy which can inform each other. Three qualitative methodologies, a grounded theory approach, discourse analysis and narrative analysis, particularly useful for the research of subjective experience and meaning, are briefly outlined. To compare and contrast these methodologies, I discuss their application to a pilot study concerning the experiences of living life in more than one language. I demonstrate how each research methodology can highlight different aspects of qualitative research material and address different research questions. The challenge of how these methodologies may be further developed for systemic research is posed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using a combination of macro‐ and micro‐analytic approaches in discourse analysis, this article examines transcripts from three initial sessions of DVD‐recorded conjoint couple therapy with an intercultural couple. We analyse the strategies of power employed by therapy participants to promote their preferred construction of the referral problem. Focusing on the intersections of gender, psychopathology and culture, we explore how wider sociocultural discourses play out in the micro‐context of participants' discursive exchanges. We also consider how the therapist's interventions privilege and marginalise client discourses in both strategic and unintended ways. This article offers some clinical techniques to address the dilemmas and difficulties identified in our analysis. We conclude by underscoring the value of reviewing recordings and transcripts of therapy dialogues to enhance cultural reflexivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The constructionist view assumes that therapy participants' maps of understanding depend on the institutional context and their personal perspectives. The purpose of this study was to investigate the initial maps of difficulties reported by family members starting family therapy. 106 families that were referred to a psychiatric institution for outpatient family therapy were asked open‐ended questions regarding the context of the referral, and goal and problem formulation for the therapy. The data were analysed via the consensual qualitative research‐modified (CQR‐M) method, and comparisons between groups were performed. The obtained results show a diversity of perspectives. Of interest was the predominance of medical language in describing the problem and relational language in describing the goal of therapy. An analysis of differences between mothers, fathers, adolescent patient and their siblings was also performed. The findings highlight the complexity of notions that families start family therapy with and may help therapists navigate through the therapeutic contract formulation process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Whilst there is increasing interest in spiritual and religious narratives in the field of family therapy, little has been written regarding how these constructs intersect in training and practice. This study explores the experiences of three Muslim community leaders who completed two years of systemic training as part of an innovative project in an inner‐city area. Semi‐structured interviews were analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA), resulting in the emergence of three themes: (i) the self of the systemic practitioner, (ii) experience of systemic training and (iii) application in the community. Participants recognised that most systemic principles and interventions were complementary to religious constructs and could be applied in their community work. Being part of a Muslim cohort, the skilful management of cultural sensitivity by the instructors and opportunities for faith‐based perspectives to be appreciated and engaged with as part of the meaning‐making process all contributed to a positive learning experience. Practitioner pointsMuslim community leaders in this study recognised that most systemic principles and interventions were complementary to religious constructs and could be applied in their community work.Being part of a Muslim cohort, the skilful management of cultural sensitivity by the instructors and opportunities for faith community perspectives to be heard and articulated all contributed to a positive learning experience.They expressed a need for systemic training and knowledge to be disseminated to support community leaders and Imams as well as the communities they serve.Opportunities for the expression of the subjugated discourses held by faith‐based communities are required to help identify gaps in research and training that could lead to the establishment of service provisions that do not denigrate the core beliefs of these populations.The incorporation of faith community understandings of the self, family and society into systemic practice would enable institutions, trainers, supervisors and therapists to be more responsive to the needs of these communities, as well as identify opportunities for the co‐creation of knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper the authors suggest that instead of holding the view that the sequence of therapy follows the path of first interviewing and gathering data, then understanding and finally intervening on the basis of what is thought to be the cause of the problem, we could benefit from recognizing that the reverse view is equally plausible. According to this reverse view, which the authors call hindsight, therapists, unaware of it themselves, first come up with interventions and then, in hindsight, create explanations or particular ways of understanding problems in order to make their interventions seem rational and justifiable. A number of factors influencing therapists' choice of interventions are explored. Finally some potential advantages of the hindsight view are examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Family Therapy is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Journal of Family Therapy is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This article reports a systematic review of the literature examining therapists' views and experiences of utilizing treatment manuals. Key databases were searched and a thematic narrative analysis was conducted. Twelve articles were identified. The literature contains four distinct subthemes: (i) exposure to and use of manuals; (ii) therapists' beliefs about manuals; (iii) therapist characteristics, such as age/gender/training and (iv) characteristics of the work, such as client group. The analysis finds that clinicians who have used manuals appraise them positively, and view them as facilitating flexibility, allowing for therapeutic relationship and keeping therapy on track. The review is a helpful contribution to the literature and is a prompt to practitioners to consider their own views and exposure to manualized treatments and how this relates to generating the ‘hard’ outcome data that governments and service commissioners internationally find credible and persuasive. Practitioner points: The positive appraisal of manuals is increased through exposure to them in clinical practice or research settings. Clinicians may wish, therefore, to seek out opportunities to use manuals.Clinicians are rarely exposed to manuals, which presents a potential topic for training courses to address. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores the crying episodes of twenty-eight clients treated at a family therapy service in a community centre. The crying episodes were associated with some significant elements: the time of appearance, the content and triggering factor, the interpersonal context of sessions and the emotions clients had for the therapist, as well as the therapy's outcome (end of treatment and the satisfaction of clients). Crying was much more frequent during the first session. It occurred more frequently when there was another family member present. The proportion of clients who cried during the treatment was significantly higher for clients who completed it successfully. Clients who cried perceived the therapist, in all cases, as a kind person who never got annoyed with them. Crying could be considered a type of behaviour that helps the therapist to create a safe context and foster the therapeutic alliance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tom Andersen's Reflecting Team approach is widely (and creatively) employed in family therapy. Despite continuing enthusiasm for the practice, however, there are few journal articles reporting empirical research and only one (now dated) review of the literature. After defining reflecting team processes through practices that are embedded in particular approaches to knowledge construction and theoretical interpretation, we offer an overview of the empirical research found in our search of the literature. In the second half of this article we ask why there is so little existing research in this area. Various possible explanations are explored and future directions proposed. We conclude that a dialogue around the complex interweaving of practice, theory and research (that is, praxis) would be a helpful overall stance to adopt in relation to future work in this area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article an attempt is made to understand how power and control issues between genders manifest themselves in eating habits in a Chinese family context, which contribute to the child's obesity problems. Eight obese children (six boys and two girls) and their families participated in the qualitative study. Their ages range from 7 to 13. The two clinical themes of power dynamics in eating habits that emerged in the findings are the dominant husband and the wife in charge. Eating practices are characterized by struggles over who is in control and power is played out in the gendered division of work in the kitchen, food preferences or feeding practices. The powerful parent was observed to be the one allied with the obese child, and the coalition further increased the power base. The study also reveals women's power dominance in a society in which patriarchal values prevail. Implications for treatment are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Randomized clinical trial (RCT) research has come to dominate the research landscape of marriage and family therapy (MFT). Despite becoming the ‘gold standard’ for evaluating clinical research and clinical practices, there is a growing debate regarding the reliance on RCTs as the primary basis for evaluating clinical intervention in MFT. Given the natural diversity of clients, settings and clinical problems faced by practitioners and the relational and recursive interactional process of MFT, one of the major challenges for the field of MFT will be to come to grips with the research–practice gap by moving beyond a single methodological standard through adopting a ‘levels of evidence’ approach as a framework that promotes diverse research methods, different methodological criteria (depending on the method), and evaluation based on the accumulated type of evidence needed to answer a specific policy, clinical practice choice, or within a model clinical decision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A review of the place of the therapeutic relationship within systemic approaches to therapy is provided. This serves to contextualize the findings of a research study that subjects therapy sessions to a discursive analysis. The purpose of the analysis is to learn more about the therapeutic relationship through an examination of what actually takes place in sessions. Moments in therapy where therapeutic engagement is stronger and moments when it is weaker are identified and analysed. The discursive contours of a robust therapeutic relationship are highlighted. A theoretical account of the constituents of a stronger therapeutic relationship is constructed from this analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]