Discussion: Theory in Action: Applications of Family, Feminist, and Transpersonal Theories

A mother and father decide to bring their 10-year-old son to counseling because he has been misbehaving in school. The counselor learns that the son's behavior started around the same time his parents began having marital problems. Although they had not told the son about their problems, the parents wonder if he has heard them arguing at night.

If you were the counselor, how would you begin to provide services to this family? Would your initial focus be on the couple, the son, or the entire family system? Some postmodern counselors view the family as a system. In this system, every individual is affected by one another, which in turn, affects the system as a whole.

A mother decides to bring her daughter into counseling after many "rebellious" episodes and verbal disagreements with her father. The mother expresses that the daughter has always been well-behaved and is not sure why she is now opposing the rules of the house. The counselor learns that the daughter is frustrated with the obedience that her father demands of her and her mother. While her brothers have much freedom, she must clean up after them and is not allowed the same privileges.

If you were the counselor, how would you provide services to this family? Feminist family counselors seek to mitigate the inequalities felt among family members and cultural groups. In addition, they place much emphasis on the social world of the woman and the impact of sex and gender roles.

For this week's Discussion, you consider which theoretical approach most resonates with you: family systems therapy or feminist family therapy. You then watch the media piece that translates this theory into practice. Specifically, you examine how the counselor depicted in the media used your selected theoretical approach to guide his or her interventions.

Note: When crafting your Discussion post, support your ideas by providing references to specific examples from the video presentation. In addition, cite the video frame (e.g., 8.32 minutes) that the action or intervention occurred. You do not need to summarize the demonstration itself, as your Instructor and many of your colleagues have also viewed it. Instead provide insight into the interventions used and major constructs of the theory.

Brief description of the video you selected and the theoretical approach used. Explain how this theory resonates with you. Then, describe the counselor's specific interventions that would indicate his/her theoretical approach and explain how effectively the counselor demonstrated the approach. Finally, share one insight you gained from watching the counselor in the media.

Assignment- Application: Analyzing Counseling Theories

This week concludes your side-by-side analysis of counseling theories. Download the chart template, "Analyzing Counseling Theories" from this week's Learning Resources to complete the last piece of your integrative approach assignment.

Part 1: Chart

· Use the chart template to analyze counseling theories.

· Select two theories from this week's Learning Resources.

· Describe the background theory, human nature, major constructs, applications, and evaluations of each counseling theory.

Part 2: Reflection (1 page)

· Describe a specific population of clients with whom you hope to work in the future.

· Explain which of the two theories in your chart would be the most effective in working with this client population and explain why.

· Describe the interventions you would suggest from this theory and how these interventions would assist this client population in reaching counseling goals.