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Monica McGoldrick stands as a towering figure in the field of family therapy. Initially earning a Masters in Russian Studies, she then pivoted to social work and systems thinking. McGoldrick's illustrious career has been marked by significant contributions to family therapy, particularly through her work with family genograms, mapping family relationships and histories to identify patterns across generations. She expanded the use of genograms to incorporate cultural, ethnic and gender contexts, revolutionising the field. Her work emphasises understanding individuals within their historical, social and cultural contexts. She has authored multiple seminal texts, including ‘Ethnicity and family therapy’, and Genograms: Assessment and treatment, which are essential reading in family therapy training. McGoldrick has also been a trailblazer in addressing issues related to gender and power in family therapy. In this candid interview, she contextualises and frames her experience in a historical scaffold at a pivotal time in the evolution of family therapy. Monica details her involvement in the development of important endeavours such as the Multicultural Family Institute and the Women of Stonehenge where she emphasises the vital role of women in our community and the profound contribution of women in our profession, often dismissed and undervalued. We also discuss her notable contribution in the development and expansion of family genograms where she highlights the central and fundamental role of culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The context of this paper is family situations where young people are experiencing significant behavioural and emotional problems. Based on a qualitative study, it offers an empirical and theoretical contribution to the understanding of family‐related factors that promote or hinder behaviour change. Data were collected through face‐to‐face, semi‐structured group interviews with nine families (28 participants), all of them mandatory recipients of child welfare services in Croatia. Thematic analysis comprised primary coding designed to elicit information about individual family members' capacity for change and secondary coding of family‐level phenomena. The results indicated 10 phenomena that were judged to represent factors that helped or hindered change. The discussion section suggests three broad categories of capacity to change at family level (Goals and Priorities; Problem solving dynamics; and Development of role relationship). This analysis is offered as the basis for an examination of the concept of family capacity for change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Family‐centred practice (FCP) has been suggested as a best practice for treating youth with emotional and behavioural difficulties in residential care. In this preregistered systematic review, we examined how FCP is operationalized and measured in residential youth care and which family outcomes are associated with FCP. Our systematic search in six databases identified 5784 articles. We analysed included articles by coding the operationalizations of FCP in the interventions and study measures. Further, we descriptively summarized relations between FCP and family outcomes. Thirteen articles met our inclusion criteria. In these articles, FCP was operationalized by five types of youth worker actions in interventions and was measured as five types of family involvement. Ten articles examined pre–post differences in family‐centred interventions. Only four articles analysed relations between FCP and a family outcome. Studies found some support for a positive association between FCP and whole‐family functioning, but overall, the association between FCP and family outcomes remains unclear. Our findings demonstrate that more research is needed that specifically examines different aspects of FCP and how they relate to family outcomes in residential youth care. Such studies can benefit from the conceptual model proposed for FCP in residential youth care interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a paradoxical paradigm operating in neurodiverse families with autistic children, indicating increased stress alongside enrichment of family life. An emerging body of research has shown that the use of family therapy can improve family functioning and relationships in neurodiverse families. The current study uses constructivist grounded theory to explore clinicians' experiences and perceptions of utilising family therapy in the context of autism. Study findings suggest that clinicians integrate therapeutic techniques from diverse family therapy approaches to improve family relations by bridging different ways of learning and communicating as well as facilitating multiple perspectives. Integrating therapeutic techniques across diverse approaches further encompasses working with the systems around the individual with autism. To adapt family therapy in the context of autism, it is suggested that clinicians examine their own perspectives and beliefs about autism and keep a curious stance during the process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Women who have experienced conflict‐related sexual violence report significant long‐term effects, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression and relationship difficulties. Research has demonstrated that maternal trauma is associated with children's behavioural difficulties and challenges in family functioning, such as impaired communication and harsh parenting. This pilot study is aimed at evaluating the preliminary effectiveness of family therapy for Kosovar mothers who experienced conflict‐related sexual violence in 1998–1999 and later developed PTSD and their children in improving family functioning and reducing behavioural difficulties in postwar times. Sixty‐four mothers were randomised to an intervention group or a waitlist control group. Data was collected during a screening phase, at baseline before intervention initiation, after the intervention group completed family therapy and once the waitlist control group received the intervention. Generalised linear mixed models were used to analyse group differences in family functioning and children's behaviours over time. At follow‐up, mothers in the intervention group reported improved family functioning. However, mothers in the waitlist control group reported significantly fewer behavioural difficulties than mothers in the intervention group before the control group had started family therapy. There was no significant interaction between group condition and time for child‐rated family functioning. Overall, this pilot study suggests that family therapy could be effective in reducing the effects of intergenerational trauma related to PTSD and conflict‐related sexual violence. Future research should evaluate the long‐term effects of family therapy to assess if immediate effects were maintained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses articles in the issue on topics including Bowen family systems theory's focus on family as treatment unit, triangles managing anxiety, and differentiation promoting resilience.

Family violence is becoming increasingly visible in Australia, with many state and federal governments taking on more responsibility to address family violence and its impacts on those affected. Current efforts are focused on practice frameworks, identifying and responding to risk factors, and social justice frameworks including legislating against family violence in a range of jurisdictions and addressing more broadly the structural and cultural forces that perpetuate violence and further oppress those victimised. Family violence is not unique to Australia, with prevalence rates internationally suggesting family violence occurs irrespective of country, race, age, culture, effectiveness of social policies or socioeconomic status. This paper explores relevant foundational concepts of Bowen family systems theory (BFST) as it relates to family violence and explores opportunities to evolve practice in this area. BFST offers a unique contribution towards addressing family violence, particularly in relation to the public health challenge of addressing family polyvictimisation. The paper also explores how BFST conceptualises family violence and the role of the professional in working with the family as a single emotional unit. The unique focus of BFST on observing and defining self within the emotional family unit through observation of the underlying multigenerational emotional patterns of functioning provides unique opportunities to evolve and develop both the capacity of clinicians and responses to families who are navigating the serious and challenging impacts of family violence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dr Murray Bowen, developer of Bowen family systems theory (BFST), had this to say to clients about working in family systems: if you get bogged down in one area, move into another (Bowen & Kerr, 1985). This statement, along with the knowledge of BFST, offered an inspiration for thinking about a method of therapy. This article highlights a method of working with an individual through a systemic lens. Two ideas are integral to this focus. One is that a client can move more easily into observing self within the system when they are not just observing self in one context or relationship but rather looking at how they function in different contexts or relationships. And second, by moving into different contexts of the system, the therapist is better able to manage the tendency towards symptom focus and stay centred on the work of differentiation. A therapist can truly have a stadium view of the system when speaking with the client about how they function in different areas of life. This method defined happens in three phases: in phase 1, the client observes themselves in their system in different contexts and looks for patterns in their functioning; in phase 2, the client takes this new self‐recognition and experiments with different ways of being in one context; and in phase 3, the insights gained from experiments in one context are applied in other contexts. Both client and clinician will benefit from less symptom focus and increased ability to observe patterns in relationships, both of which are core tenets of the work of differentiation in BFST. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of differentiation of self and its relationship to the natural capacity of humans and other social animals to adapt underpins clinician and researcher Victoria Harrison's long‐term investigation of the biology of reactivity in relationships. Victoria's early research related to infertility and reproduction demonstrated how reactivity in at least three prior generations can contribute to chronic conditions, such as endometriosis, that are less amenable to intervention. Her most recent project, the 'Observations of Change in Physiology and Family' research, highlights how work on differentiation of self improves functional outcomes in physical and mental health for the family. While an individual may not experience the 'calm mind' that is often the goal of conventional therapeutic intervention, a significant reduction in symptoms and an improvement in overall functioning and relatedness are outcomes. This occurred when participants focused on increasing person‐to‐person contact with extended family members, reducing their emotional reactivity to significant others in the important triangles of their life and family and maintaining intellectual activity, often described as curiosity, even while reacting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This conceptual paper explores the surprising impact exerted by third elements on the escalation and de‐escalation of conflicts in business families. To this end, we draw on core concepts of Batesonian cybernetic theory to perform a reconceptualisation of pertinent literature on changing conflict dynamics gathered in family business research and consultancy. Based on this reconceptualisation, we identify explanations and key mechanisms for the impact of third elements on conflict dynamics. Our study thus contributes to research at the interface of family business research, conflict research and cybernetic theory development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This participatory research project highlighted the views and experiences of young people who are the brothers and sisters of children and young people who have experienced child sexual abuse. By working with young people who had experienced sexual abuse and their siblings, this practitioner research sought to give these young people a voice. The research involved a group process with young people who have experienced sexual abuse and have siblings, and one‐to‐one online consultations with the brothers and sisters of young people who have experienced abuse. All the young people spoke of their sibling and family relationships as unique and requiring unique responses to these relationships by services and health‐care professionals. Siblings' needs in the aftermath of a child sexual abuse discovery are often overlooked. This research describes how just as children who have experienced sexual abuse may feel anger, fear, guilt, shame, anxiety, and confusion, so do their siblings. Brothers and sisters of young people who have experienced sexual abuse describe significant relational trauma with intense emotional experiences of isolation, confusion, sadness, and anger. There is a real need to support young people and families to find words and develop capacities to talk about child sexual abuse ‐‐ a need to find supportive ways to speak about what has occurred and understand its impact on all. The study clearly demonstrated the significant level of need and impact on brothers and sisters of young people who have experienced sexual abuse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes a multi‐family therapy (MFT) group for adult outpatients with obsessive‐compulsive disorder and their family members. Since family accommodation (FA) is known to maintain OCD symptoms by preventing exposure and response prevention (ERP), reduction of FA is a major focus of the treatment. Furthermore, psychoeducation, conjoint ERP and (re)discovering resources and strengths of families are also important therapeutic foci of the family group. The organisation of MFT is explained and involvement of family is illustrated with clinical vignettes. Finally, some reflections about MFT are provided. On the basis of initial clinical impressions, MFT seems a promising approach. A clinical trial is currently underway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]