Chapter 14 Family Counseling in the Schools

Family Stressors  Poverty  Lack of sufficient health care  Drug/alcohol addiction  Exposure to violent crimes  Academic transition points  Evolving definition of who comprises a family  Single parent families  Biracial families  Blended families  Same gender families  Grandparent headed families

Why Is Family Counseling Appropriate in the School?  Family and school are the two places that have a strong common goal of developing children  When problems arise at school, it may signal the need for intervention  Interventions aimed at family change may be more effective for difficulties arising from a child’s home life than interventions aimed at symptom relief

Why Intervene at the School Level? Parental involvement in school has been shown to have positive impact on children Facilitating parental involvement requires an individual with the knowledge and skills necessary to confront the complex dynamics often found in families

Does Family Counseling Work in the Schools? Effective mode of treatment for a large variety of student concerns Shown to produce positive change quickly Cost effective

Multicultural Issues  Assess acculturation levels of families  Ethnicity may impact the child and parents differently  Parents and children may choose to negotiate between culture and dominant culture in different ways  Key assumptions when attempting to do culturally sensitive counseling  Families should express their feelings  Many cultures are more restrictive in directly expressing emotions  Families are paying greater attention to verbal statements than nonverbal  Families rely upon more subtle forms of communication to interpret the counselor’s intent

Multicultural Issues, cont…. Families will be comfortable in voluntary disclosure of personal information Families may not answer voluntarily provide personal information unless directly asked. Problem solving strategies should be linear and/or logical Families may be more comfortable with holistic or intuitive strategies Errors counselors may make when working with families from other cultures Over or under estimating the importance of one or more cultural values in the family’s life Failing to differentiate among various subcultural groups Failing to understand how a cultural group behavior will vary according to other environments

Systemic Approaches Linear vs. systems approach Individual phenomenological perspective vs. examination of patterns of communication and interaction among family members Linearity vs. circular causality: Linearity examines events and possible consequences while circular causality helps one examine all of the possible related interactions or events in a circular pattern.

Overview of Theories Humanistic Approaches (Existential)  Believes root cause of family’s concern to be emotional suppression  Helps individuals within family to express feelings and not control behavior through feelings  Emphasizes open communication, empathy and self disclosure  Sees family therapy as an emotional encounter Structural Approaches  Focuses on boundaries and hierarchy among family members  Boundaries balance the need for privacy and openness  Hierarchy of family relates to the various subsystems within family

Overview of Theories Solution Focused Approach  Examines how the family has attempted to solve the problem  Orientation is toward the future and to change with a quick, concrete, working solutions  Presenting problem is viewed behaviorally  Counselor’s role is to validate family’s experience, guide members as they shift behavior, and build on existing strength Strategic Approach  Family’s problems are seen when family becomes stuck trying to maintain homeostasis when change is required  Emphasizes goal direction and examines the rules of the system  Strategic counselors are problem-focused and prescriptive  Focus is on the problem and the families interactional sequence  Techniques focus on interrupting the interactional patterns that are maintaining the problem

Overview of Theories Social Construction and Narrative Approach  Based on the belief that knowledge is constructed with our relations and interactions with others  Individuals are seen as constructing their own world view of reality  Counseling is then a meaning making and a language generating process where the counselor creates meaning with the client  Counselors engage the family in conversation that allows the telling of their stories  As work progresses the goal is to change the narrative, so when retold, the stories include hope and previously unacknowledged alternatives  The counselor is a collaborator with the family

Brief Family Counseling Model Step 1: Determining the appropriateness of counseling  Small steps can lead to big changes  Is the family willing to accept help?  Is the family’s concern within my professional expertise?  Is this problem of long-duration or more short term? Step 2: Initial Contact  Gather information from a variety of sources to assess need  Frame the problem in a way that reduces barriers for a family to seek help  Keep in mind the cultural considerations  Have classroom interventions not achieved the desired result?

Brief Family Counseling Model Step 3: Setting up the meeting  Consider alternative meeting times outside of typical school hours in order to accommodate a family  Setting the tone: It is important to convey to the family that you are in a position to help and are not taking sides or passing judgement Step 4: Initial meeting  Greet each member  Discuss meeting format and process of counseling  Review informed consent  gather history of family and of presenting problem (see next slide)

What information should I gather? History of problem, including times when problem does NOT occur Recent changes to family structure Describe a typical day/week Prior attempts the family has made to resolve issue and assess outcomes THEN WHAT? Communicate hope for the future and that the family is not alone in this struggle Place problem in a new perspective and emphasize shared responsibility for the problem

Techniques Genograms and family life line  provides structural look at family  Places relevant family history into view Play Therapy/doll house Techniques Role Play  Assists in tracking of sequences in family and allows a closer look at patterns the family uses when having difficulties Bibliotherapy The mobile  Illustrates the interconnectivity of families. That one family member’s actions can impact others The Ropes/Pass the Animal  Assists in learning to take turns and create an openness to change Humor  Lowers resistance and can keep sessions fun