A Brief Family Therapy Intervention with A Central American Immigrant Family: A Case Study in Resiliency

Abstract

This case study explores the experience of a Spanish-speaking family of four of Central American descent living in the United States who engaged in a brief family therapy intervention with the author. A detailed discussion of this family’s progression in therapy highlights several important elements that may be considered when working as a social worker or psychotherapist with immigrant families from Central America: (1) The utility of a primary care clinic as a neutral site/entry point for reducing the perceived stigma of behavioral health services; (2) a prolonged joining process that supports flexible inclusion of individual patient as well as relevant family members; (3) the process of co-creating a powerful, intercultural therapeutic alliance and (4) a blended model of brief family therapy as an effective option for improving family and individual well-being. Names and certain identifying details are changed to protect the family’s confidentiality.