MFT National Exam Prep (Family Therapy only) Questions And Answers All Verified By An Expert A+ Graded

All Family Therapists.... - ANS Look beyond the individual and toward the system and are always conceptualizing the person's struggle within the system's context Like human systems, Family therapists believe - ANS That no individual can be understood without understanding the system to which he or she is a part of and the dynamics between various relationships within that system & no system can be understood without understanding the individual within the system When looking at the applications of systems theory - ANS No one individual can be assessed as functioning independently from the system to which they belong When a parent or family member call to request therapy - ANS The family therapist will encouraged as many members of the family to join as possible The first step or primary aim of systemic therapy is - ANS to expand the symptom beyond the individual and toward the system If the family suggests that only one child in the system is struggling, as the family therapist - ANS We understand that one individual's symptoms is likely a systemic problem and several complex dynamics may be involved and may contribute to the symptom & involve everyone within that system The go to assessment tool for a family therapist is - ANS A genogram as it provides all of the information necessary to fully understand the client system As a marriage and family therapist - ANS Relationships are the core of our practice and aim to maintain neutrality across all members of the family. The field of MFT is heavily based upon the concept of shifting from - ANS linear causality (psychodynamic/CBT) to circular causality Triangles in MFT - ANS Individuals often bring a third party as a means to help them manage anxiety (parent, best friend, or bottle of Scotch) The single most productive shift a family therapist can do is - ANS Focus on the process of communication rather than content Family Structure - ANS Minuchin (Structural Therapy Term) and can relate to disengagement, enmeshment, disorganization, subsystems, or boundaries found in all systems Family therapists are always - ANS interpreting symptoms as metaphors for the larger or deeper systemic problem within the family Family cycles - ANS 1. Leaving home as single young adults; 2. Joining of families through marriage/New couple; 3. Families with young children; 4. Families with Adolescents; 5. Launching children and moving on; & 6. Families later in life Families must reorganize to - ANS accommodate the growth and change of members in new phases of life Resistance - ANS Families are naturally resistant to change & is an inherent part of family therapy and change.