Field Of Family Therapy Research Articles

Positive practice in family therapy.

Positive practice, a brief integrative approach to consultation with families, is described in this paper. A clear distinction is made between the stages of planning, assessment, therapy, and disengagement. Guidelines for progression from one stage to the next are provided. Frameworks for deciding who to invite to preliminary sessions and methods for planning and organizing lines of inquiry are incorporated into this approach to practice. A three-column model is used to construct formulations. The model allows therapists and clients to map information about the pattern of interaction around the presenting problem, beliefs that constrain family members from altering their roles in these problem-maintaining patterns, and factors that have predisposed family members to hold these beliefs. Positive practice offers methods for evolving new behavioral patterns and belief systems within sessions and for arranging homework tasks for clients between sessions. It also incorporates methods for dealing with resistance, for managing therapeutic crises, for convening individual sessions and broader network meetings, for disengaging from the consultation process, and for recontracting for further episodes of therapy. This evolving approach to practice draws on ideas from many traditions within the family therapy field and takes account of recent research relevant to the practice of family therapy.

Theoretical unity and Technical Eclecticism: Pathways to Coherence in Family Therapy

The premise of this article is that the diverse field of family therapy will be better served if the major theory underlying a clinical model is identified clearly and various techniques are integrated into it on a systematic basis. The method proposed for accomplishing this is specification of the underlying causality and objectives inherent in a theoretical model. The implications for the field of family therapy are that the current fads that result in divisiveness over who is cognitive-behavioral, strategic, gestalt, or systemic can be avoided if specific objectives are delineated and techniques are integrated coherently. This has impact upon the ability of third-party insurers and the general public to understand the field of family therapy more clearly, and to choose practitioners whose outcomes closely match client needs in terms of length of treatment and behavioral change.

Introduction: Special Section on AIDS/HIV

The field of family therapy has been slow to respond, at least in print, to the devastation created by the presence of AIDS/HIV in our midst. The special section introduced here offers the stories of clients and therapists as they join to face the disease together. The authors included herein share their clinical ideas, their personal challenges and reflections, and their hopes for how therapists can work with clients to create new ways of living with HIV.

Telling changes: from narrative family therapy to organizational change and development

Explores how developments in the ground‐breaking field of narrative family therapy might be applied to organizational change efforts. After an introductory discussion of some of narrative therapy’s key orientations and practices (e.g. postmodern notions of language and power, influence mapping, problem externalization, unique outcomes, audiencing), an extended example is given where a narrative approach was used to effect change in a health‐care organization. The case is used to generate a series of research questions and directions.

A rationale for family therapy specialization in early intervention.

Over the past two decades, professionals providing intervention to families with children with disabilities have witnessed a philosophical shift from individually oriented care to family-centered care. Although the relevance of family therapy to these families has been formally acknowledged through the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), the integration of the fields of family therapy and developmental disabilities has not yet occurred to any significant degree. Awareness of critical issues associated with developmental disabilities and the potential impact on the family system is vital to the process of family-centered intervention. In this paper we address the need for family specialists to become knowledgeable about early intervention considerations relevant to young children with disabilities and their families.

Use of the DSM in marriage and family therapy programs: current practices and attitudes.

The DSM has largely become the common language of behavioral health which its authors intended. Although family systems theory resulted in part from the study of major mental illness, it later became distanced from considerations of individual psychopathology. No studies have assessed current practices and views within the field of family therapy on teaching students the use of the DSM. Member training programs of the Education and Training Council of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy were surveyed regarding their practices in teaching the DSM. Seventy-nine of 177 surveys (45%) were returned. Ninety-one percent of these programs offered training in the DSM, and in 93% of those such training was mandatory. Written comments indicated that pragmatic concerns about students being able to speak a common language with other behavioral health providers were among the primary reasons for teaching the DSM.

Family Therapy: Inner, Outer and the Issue of Pathology

This paper sets out to examine the relationship between ‘the inner’, ‘the outer’, and ‘the issue of pathology’ in the family therapy field. It begins with the observations that ‘pathology’ has become a rarely mentioned issue in family therapy, and ‘what is wrong’ is increasingly located in ‘the outer’: the family ‘game’, ‘linguistic activity’ or ‘the cultural discourse’. At the same time, family therapy often hosts forums in which presenters are ‘attacked’ for not seeming to hold the ‘correct view’. The paper considers these phenomena in tandem, looks at the matter of ‘method’, and applies James Hillman's critique of psychoanalysis to family therapy. The suggestion is that family therapy has been blinded by its own metaphor of ‘seeing’, symbolised and literalised in the one way screen. Alternative metaphors privileging intuition, feeling and aesthetics are put forward, before discussion points are raised, and before this paper on therapy concludes poetically, or this paper concludes that therapy may be poetry.

Connecting Bowen theory with its human origins.

Murray Bowen recognized the importance of grounding clinical practice within a clearly articulated theoretical framework, which could claim its place within the general scientific tradition. Bowen theory has established itself as a significant contribution to the field of family therapy. However, in its insistence on excluding, in the interests of rigorous inquiry, all contributions except those from a natural science perspective, Bowen theory has neglected the very elements that are the identifying characteristics of Homo sapiens. As well as recognizing the common systemic characteristics of all life forms, a theory of the family and family therapy that does justice to the human condition will also need to attend to the ways in which human systems are distinct from those of other life forms. In this enterprise, the social sciences will be as important as the natural sciences.

Damaged, Deficient or Determined? Deconstructing Narratives in Family Therapy

This study attempts to challenge the prevailing understanding of family problems within the field of family therapy. Drawing on post-structuralist approaches to knowledge, truth and power, we suggest that the problems experienced by the families cannot be seen to have an objective existence, or to be internal to the ‘family unit’. Rather, the problem-saturated narratives presented by families are shaped by an investment in socially constructed knowledges which ascribe meaning to experience. A discourse analytic approach is used to explore the dominant narratives of a coloured South African family presenting for family therapy. Discourses of civilization, ideal mothers and families, and therapy are considered to have informed these narratives. An analysis of the implications of these discursive investments, and the contradictions within and between these discourses, is conducted. This analysis suggests the manner in which this family is subjugated and rendered damaged and deficient through an aspiration to unobtainable and contradictory ideals. The study also examines the way in which the truth claims of these discourses are challenged by a therapist adopting a narrative approach to family therapy.

DEVELOPING AN IDENTITY AS A FEMINIST FAMILY THERAPIST: IMPLICATIONS FOR TRAINING

Although feminists have profoundly influenced the field of family therapy, little has been written about the process by which these women came to identify themselves as feminist family therapists. This article reports the results of a qualitative research study that explored that process and suggests a model of feminist family therapy identity development. Implications for training programs are reveived.

Intrusiveness and closeness-caregiving: rethinking the concept of family "Enmeshment".

This article analyzes the concepts of "enmeshment" and "cohesion" and their entanglement in the field of family therapy. Early theories in this area were concerned primarily with processes of self/other differentiation. More recent theories have favored spatial metaphors that emphasize closeness-distance. We contend that self/ other differentiation and closeness-distance are different classes of behavior and that their linkage in the literature has obscured useful distinctions. Our analysis reveals two separate dimensions that clinicians and researchers should consider: Intrusiveness (including coercive control, separation anxiety, possessiveness/jealousy, emotional reactivity, and projective mystification); and Closeness-Caregiving (including warmth, time together, nurturance, physical intimacy, and consistency). We give definitions of these constructs and briefly examine their clinical and gender-related implications.

Introduction

Collaborative approaches emphasizing individual constructions of reality, local and sociopolitical narratives, and a curious therapist stance have been growing in popularity in the mariage and family therapy field. This article examines Anderson's (1995) Collaborative Language Systems approach in terns of its ability to help same-sex couples negotiate the negative effects of social marginalization. The article drawsfrom the limited number of empirical studies on same-sex couples, as well as the literature on individual homosexual development (e.g., adaptiveness of "coming out") and personal observation. It is assumed that discrimination and marginalization make the development of positive couple identity and emotional-social couple support difficult for same-sex couples. Case examples representing various presenting problems and levels of positive same-sex couple identity and emotional-social support illustrate the strengths and limitations of a collaborative, constructionistfamily therapy approach. Suggestions are offered to increase therapist sensitivity around lesbian and gay couple issues.

John Weakland: A Personal Note

Family ProcessVolume 34, Issue 4 p. 369-371 John Weakland: A Personal Note† JAY HALEY, JAY HALEY Send correspondence or reprint requests to P.O. Box 8094, La Jolla CA 92038–8094.Search for more papers by this author JAY HALEY, JAY HALEY Send correspondence or reprint requests to P.O. Box 8094, La Jolla CA 92038–8094.Search for more papers by this author First published: December 1995 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1545-5300.1995.00369.xCitations: 2 † Editor's Note: John Weakland, a pioneering figure in the family therapy field, died on July 8 in Palo Alto after a long illness. A core member of the team at the Mental Research Institute (MRI) since the 1960s, John was a major contributor to the explication of what has come to be known as strategic family therapy, and has been a central figure in the development of brief family therapy approaches. John was also an important member of the Family Process family, having served for many years as an Advisory Editor for the journal. I have asked Jay Haley, the first Editor of Family Process, and a colleague of John Weakland's during those early, exciting years at MRI, to share some of his personal memories of John with our readership. Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article.Citing Literature Volume34, Issue4December 1995Pages 369-371 RelatedInformation

The Evolving Treatment of Gender, Ethnicity, and Sexual Orientation in Marital and Family Therapy

In 1985, Virginia Goldner wrote an article for the Family Therapy Networker entitled Warning: Family Therapy May Be Hazardous to Your Health. In this one tongue-in-cheek title, Goldner captured a major theme and source of controversy in the discourse surrounding marital and family therapy over the last decade. This debate centers around the idea that some clients may not be well-served and, in some cases, may be harmed by marital and family therapy. More specifically, at the heart of this debate is the premise that marital and family therapy as traditionally practiced is oppressive to specific constituencies. In the last 10 years, questions have been raised and criticism leveled concerning biases in marital and family therapy that have ignored and, in some cases, pathologized three groups: women in families, racial-ethnic minority families, and gay and lesbian families. Although the critiques of the field of marital and family therapy's treatment of gender, race and ethnicity, and sexual orientation evolved independent of one another with no common theoretical framework, similarities exist in the criticisms offered and questions posed about the biases that exist in marital and family therapy. The purpose of this review article is to look at similarities in the critiques emanating from these different quarters and to examine the impact these critiques have had on the field of marital and family therapy. In addition, areas in which work is still needed will be identified. Prior to examining these critiques in greater detail, one point should be noted. Discussions of the treatment of minority families in marital and family therapy have often been clouded by an inconsistency in terminology. The term ethnicity is most frequently found, but is often used somewhat interchangeably with the term culture. Although there is a great deal of overlap in the terms culture and ethnicity, they are not synonymous; culture is broader in scope than ethnicity (Preli & Bernard, 1993). The term race, however, is less frequently used and often is treated as simply one component of ethnicity. Hardy and Laszloffy (1994) propose that the relative silence around race, achieved by subsuming it under ethnicity, is a way of marginalizing race and downplaying the domination of the White perspective in models of family therapy. Yet race--particularly skin color--is often a defining aspect of the experience of ethnic identity for people of color. In an effort to recognize that ethnicity is much more than just race, but that race assumes a primacy in structuring peoples' experiences, both race and ethnicity are used throughout this article, with the term racial-ethnic used where grammatically appropriate. CRITIQUES OF MARITAL AND FAMILY THERAPY Any cursory review of journals, workshops, and conference programs will reveal that the topic of marital and family therapy's insensitivity to, and in some cases, oppression of certain groups has been a dominant theme in the field in the last decade. Certainly, the feminist critique of the treatment of gender in the field was the most extensively articulated during this time (e.g., Goodrich, Rampage, Ellman, & Halstead, 1988; Luepnitz, 1388; McGoldrick, Anderson, & Walsh, 1989, Walters, Carter, Papp, & Silverstein, 1988), but a substantial body of literature also addressed the treatment of racial and ethnic minority families (e.g., McGoldrick, Pearce, & Giordano, 1982; Saba, Karrer, & Hardy, 1991; Tseng & Hsu, 1991). Although less systematic attention has been given to gay and lesbian families in mainstream family therapy research and treatment journals, the topic has been a controversial one and has been addressed with greater frequency in marital and family therapy book chapters (e.g., Brown & Zimmer, 1386, Goodrich, Ellman, Rampage, & Halstead, 1990; Sanders, 1993). These critiques of marital and family therapy have varied in the specific aspects of therapy that are thought to be insensitive or oppressive, yet all share a t common concern that the field has perpetuated the status quo. …

Training and Supervision in Family Therapy: Current Issues and Future Directions

Over the last 25 years, the specialty of training and supervision has developed within the field of family therapy. Standards, policies, and learning objectives have been designed for the accreditation of family therapy training programs and for qualifying family therapy supervisors American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy AAMFT , 1991, 1993). Descriptions of training programs in various contexts have been published. Considerable attention has been devoted to designing supervision and training modalities such as live supervision and videotape review. Numerous training models and supervision approaches have evolved. Research on the outcome and effectiveness of family therapy training and supervision has slowly begun to accumulate. Finally, a number of literature reviews have been published that chronicle the above events. Although we summarize previous literature in this article, our primary intent is to assess key developments in training and supervision, outline how far we have come, and propose what we view as logical steps for continued growth in this specialty area. In this review, a distinction is made between training and supervision. Training encompasses all factors related to disseminating knowledge, including clinical supervision, curriculum development, and classroom instruction. In contrast, supervision is a more specific means of transmitting knowledge, skills, and attitudes through a relational process that entails direct oversight of trainees' clinical work (Bernard & Goodyear, 1992). HISTORICAL OVERVIEW Family therapy training and supervision has progressed through several eras (Liddle, 1988a, 1991). The first, comprised primarily of the 1970s, was characterized by a burgeoning, albeit scattered literature that addressed several issues. These included: (a) descriptions of techniques and modalities (e.g., live supervision, videotape review; cf. Bodin, 1972; Cohen, Gross, & Turner, 197G; Montalvo, 1973; Napier & Whitaker, 1972; Sonne & Lincoln, 1964; Whitaker, 1971), (b) trainees' personal therapy and the study of their own family of origin (Guerin & Fogarty, 1972; Guldner, 1978; Nichols, 1968), (c) descriptions of training programs (cf. Berman & Dixon-Murphy, 1979; Constantine, 1976; Everett, 1973; Flomenhaft & Carter, 1977; Garfield, 1979; LaPerriere, 1979; Mendelsohn & Ferber, 1972; Nichols, 1979), and (d) the influence of different variables within the training context (clinical settings, trainers' professional disciplines; cf. Erlich, 1973; Framo, 1976; Haley, 1975; Liddle, 1978; Malone, 1974; Martin, 1979; Meyerstein, 1977; Shapiro, 1979; Stanton, 1975). During this time, a number of seminal contributions provided direction for the field. One such development was the definition of three essential family therapy skills outlined by Cleghorn and Levin (1973): (a) perceptual skills, the ability to see and describe accurately the behavioral data of the therapy session; (b) conceptual skills, the ability to translate clinical observations into meaningful language; and (c) intervention skills, in-session behaviors that allow trainees to modify family interactional patterns. Another development was the specification of training models based upon major schools of family therapy (cf. Barton & Alexander, 1377; Beal, 1976; Haley, 1976). This development signaled the beginning of an axiom that continues today, namely, that the methods, theories, values, and skills taught to trainees parallel developments in the broader family therapy field. A third focus to emerge was the illumination of the modalities (live, videotape, group) that would become a hallmark of family therapy training (cf. Beavers, 1985; Berger & Dammann, 1982; Birchler, 1975; Bodin, 1972; Montavlo, 1973; Olson & Pegg, 1979; Stier & Goldenberg, 1975). As Beavers (1985) would later note, these modalities opened the training system by providing direct observation and more immediate interaction between supervisor, therapist, trainee, and client. …

Passion, Commitment, and Common Sense: A Unique Discussion With Insoo Kim Berg and Michael White

This discussion departs from the traditional “interview” in structure and content. The field, like much of society at large, has become fragmented and isolated. Therefore, this discussion was structured in such a way that encouraged a generative conversation in which we could come together and talk about our work differently. This discussion is not an explicit comparative inquiry into the methods of Solution-Focused Brief Therapy and Narrative Therapy. Those readers interested in differences or similarities between an “exception” and a “unique outcome” may risk disappointment. The purpose of the interview was to engage in a critical reflection that would not be methodology focused, but, instead provide the reader with a glimpse of the people themselves and what it is they are trying to accomplish through their work. The purpose was also to encourage discussion between all of us, instead of a linear question-and-answer process. The structure of the discussion was also influenced by a frutuitous event that occurred the night before it was scheduled to happen, when I (Jim) ran into Michael on the streets of Washington, D.C., along with his colleagues Lisa Berndt and Sharon Gollan. Michael invited me to have dinner with them and during the course of dinner I was intrigued with Lisa and Sharon for many reasons. Lisa expressed sensitivity for race and culture that could only belong to a seasoned veteran, and she had a great sense of humour. Sharon, an aboriginal woman who had presented a workshop that day with Michael, spoke with strong conviction through powerful metaphors that were quite moving. Suddenly, it occurred to me that as a white North American male (albeit, well intended) I was going to be doomed to certain blind spots in the discussion. I was convinced that Lisa and Sharon would enrich and round out the discussion with Insoo and Michael tremendously. They agreed to join as coach/participants. Why is a discussion of this sort with Insoo Kim Berg and Michael White important now? Much of the work presently being practiced in our field is derived from problem-solving theory and, thus, the practitioner operates close to the methodology of the mode. This makes it difficult for practitioners to step back and look at themselves in their work. This is not only an issue of knowledge and technique, but an issue of power. By forcing and framing their work into a particular order through technique and method, they reduce their work to a set of norms and procedures which describe how the work is supposed to be done. This excludes many other possibilities for our work with each other and with the people who come to us for help. Therefore, it is necessary to explore the meta-perspective of critical theory, which allows us to step back and critically evaluate ourselves. There are currently many questions in the field about our work and how we do our work that need to be addressed. We hope this discussion can serve as a beginning lor many conversations that could occur between many people about how we do our work and how we address some of these questions. For example: • Is our field fragmented and are the various schools of thought isolated from each other? • What is the relationship between Postmodemism and the field of family therapy? • Do we need to clarify and make explicit our collective principles and ethics? • Do we need to locus more on change beyond the therapy room? This discussion with Insoo Kim Berg and Michael White attempts to breathe life into the process and revisits their passion and commitment to their craft. It attempts to bring them to the foreground and emphasize their wisdom and sense of purpose.

Assessing the Dynamics of Gender in Couples and Families: The Gendergram

As the field of family therapy has grappled with the issue of gender (e.g., Ault-Riche, 1986; Avis, 1986; Goldner, 1985a, 1985b, 1988; Knudson-Martin, 1994; Layton, 1984; Libow, Raskin, & Caust, 1982; Luepnitz, 1988; Sheinberg & Penn, 1991; Taffel & Masters, 1989; Taggert, 1985), the message that has emerged is clear: family therapists must be more sensitive to the ways in which gender organizes the lives of clients and therapists alike and, thus, influences the practice of marriage and family therapy. This sensitivity is crucial, given the degree to which gender crosses bounds of race, class, and place Brown, 1990, p. 13) and is interwoven with our identity as individuals (Goldner, 1985b). During recent years, family therapists have also been encouraged to pay more attention to the role of assessment in clinical practice (Bagarozzi, 1989; Filsinger, 1983; Floyd, Weinand, & Cimmarusti, 1989; Grotevant & Carlson, 1989). Although gender issues have become more integrated into clinical practice, attention to gender issues in the assessment process has been insufficient (Brown, 1990). Thus, when assessing couples and families, therapists must inquire about the role of gender in the relationship process and in the presenting problem posed by the couple or family (Goodrich, Rampage, Ellman, & Halstead, 1988). A few years ago, Hoffman (1990) indicated that gender was one of the three lenses that organized her present model of family therapy. The importance of the of gender, according to Hoffman, is that it exposes established assumptions and mores in psychological theory that have come to be taken for granted, and which are detrimental not only to women but also to men (p. 7). Hoffman advocates a position, a central tenet of which is an avoidance of making the therapist's interpretation of gender issues more valid than those of the family, while maintaining a position advocating justice for all members of the family. At the same time, a keen sensitivity to the injustices of the larger system relative to gender should motivate the therapist to include the lens of gender in all aspects of assessment and therapy (cf. Brown, 1990; Goldner, 1985b; McGoldrick, Anderson, & Walsh, 1989). It is a gender-sensitive position that has informed the development of the gendergram, a procedure for assessing and addressing issues of gender with couples and families. The gendergram targets and separates out the influence of same. and other-sex relationships on the gender role development of system members across generations and over the critical developmental transitions that highlight the characteristics of relationships over time. The focus of work with the gendergram is to make overt the assumptions about gender roles that pervade, but are typically unidentified in, family systems (Boss & Weiner, 1988). CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK It is our contention that the best service therapists can provide to couples and in the arena of gender is to illuminate the beliefs that influence systemic interaction. Support for this view can be drawn from the work of the Women's Project in Family Therapy: Gender themes are not merely content, which may or may not be problematic in a given family. Rather, gender is seen as an essential wellspring of all behavior, and one of the chief connecting links between a culture and its members. (Walters, Carter, Papp, & Silverstein, 1988, p. 26) Just as work with a genogram in therapy illuminates previously shadowed interactional consequences of multigenerational beliefs, traditions, and loyalties, so, too, does work with the gendergram highlight assumptions that profoundly influence relationships. Once clarified, gender influences move from being invisible forces in systemic interaction to structures that can be influenced by individual and family decision making. These distinctive core elements of family interaction, the particulars of families (Minuchin, 1988, p. …

Monica MoGoidrick: On the Significance of Cultural Factors and Gender in Family Therapy

Monica McGoldrick is a leading figure in the family thera py field. She has been at the forefront of illuminating the importance of ethnicity, race, gender, and class in under standing families. In this interview she talks about her background and the significance of culturalfactors for the profession.

A REVISION OF THE DYADIC ADJUSTMENT SCALE FOR USE WITH DISTRESSED AND NONDISTRESSED COUPLES: CONSTRUCT HIERARCHY AND MULTIDIMENSIONAL SCALES

The existing research on the Dyadic Adjustment Scale (DAS) indicated that there were problems with some of the subscales and individual items. This study was designed to improve the instrument by following the standards of construct hierarchy. Through previous research and the analyses in this study, the subscales were found to contain some items that were homogeneous and others that were more heterogeneous. This problem was corrected by selecting out items that were homogeneous; 7 first‐order scales were created which were combined to creat the 3 second‐order concepts of consensus, satisfaction, and cohesion. With a sample of distressed and nondistressed couples, a series of confirmatory factor analyses was conducted. The factor analyses provided evidence for the construct validity of the new structure of the Revised DAS (RDAS) with the distressed, nondistressed, and total samples of this study, as well as with the sample from Spanier and Thompson's (1982) study. Additional analyses correlating the RDAS with another popular marital instrument provided more evidence for the construct validity of the RDAS. Criterion validity was demonstrated by discriminant analyses results. Both internal consistency and split‐half reliability estimates demonstrated that the RDAS was reliable. The result also supported dividing the RDAS into two alternative forms for use in pre‐ and posttest studies. Summary statistics for the RDAS are presented as are implications for the field of marriage and family therapy.

RELIABILITY IN CONSTRUCTING GENOGRAMS: A STUDY AMONG MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPY DOCTORAL STUDENTS

Although genograms are widely utilized in the field of marriage and family therapy, there has been no empirical research establishing marriage and family therapists' accuracy in using the genogram as an information‐gathering tool. This article reports results of an evaluation of how accurately marriage and family therapy doctoral students record content information on genograms. Subjects included 17 doctoral students in AAMFT accredited marriage and family therapy programs who constructed genograms from a fictitious scenario. The results indicate that marriage and family therapy doctoral students are highly accurate in recording named persons' names and symbols; moderately accurate in recording unnamed persons, occupations, relationship descriptors, medical issues, personal issues and descriptive phrases, and other significant symbols; and most inaccurate in recording dates and ages. Students' accuracy scores for recording content data on genograms were not found to be significantly correlated with experience level in the doctoral program or self‐rated genogram construction ability. Implications for marriage and family therapists and trainers are provided, including a call for more standardized instruction in genogram construction.