Marriage And Family Therapy Students Research Articles

Finding the Supervision Key of Therapists’ Progress

The purpose of this study is to compare the differences between Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT) student perceptions of (a) types of praise used by MFT supervisors, (b) MFT students’ self-theory of intelligence, and (c) MFT students’ continued development of skills. Four hypotheses were tested stating that different types of praise used by MFT supervisors would have a significant effect on MFT supervisees’ development of skills. Two MANCOVAs were performed, which revealed that therapists praised for their efforts significantly continued to improve their professional skills, while others praised for their ability significantly reduced their efforts in upgrading clinical skills.

Teletherapy in Training: A Trying and Transformative Experience

Recent changes in federal and state laws, largely brought on because of the novel coronavirus, have underscored the need for revolutionizing the clinical training experience for Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT) programs and their implementation of telehealth services. This article addresses the current telehealth training in MFT programs, featuring the process of teletherapy training at Nova Southeastern University's (NSU) Department of Family, including adaptation to current policies and procedures. This study utilized semistructured interviews with eight graduate- and post-graduate–level MFT students at NSU who received telehealth training prior to participating in a teletherapy-based clinical practicum at NSU's Brief Therapy Institute. The emergent themes from the analysis included crisis management, flexibility, and self-care. Lastly, we discuss the implications and limitations of our study and suggest areas of future research. The information provides knowledge on necessary training topics and expands the literature on teletherapy.

Faith Integration in Marriage and Family Therapy Education: A Delphi Study of the Learning Experiences of Students Enrolled in Christian Faith-Based MFT Graduate Programs

This study explored how students in Christian faith-based marriage and family therapy (MFT) graduate training programs are taught and learn to integrate their faith with the discipline of MFT. A Delphi method was utilized to develop consensus among a panel of students enrolled in faith-based MFT training programs regarding what teaching methods and subject matter are most useful to MFT students’ integrative education. The results of this study indicated several helpful means by which to educate MFT students in matters of faith integration and also highlighted various ways in which students learn to connect their Christian beliefs and practices to the profession of family therapy. In tandem with these results, a number of recommendations for teaching integration to students enrolled in Christian faith-based MFT graduate programs are also discussed.

Marriage and Family Therapy Students’ Experience with Common Factors Training

With the increased empirical and theoretical support for common factors in the psychotherapy literature, marriage and family therapy (MFT) scholars have begun discussing the inclusion of common factors in MFT training. However, there is very little empirical research on common factors training or how to include common factors in MFT curricula. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to investigate MFT students' experience with common factors training. Seventeen master's degree students who received training in common factors participated in the study. Data was comprised of participants' journal reflections and focus group interviews on their experience learning about common factors and how this influenced their work with clients. Participants' responses to the training were overwhelmingly positive and highlighted the ways in which studying common factors enhanced their confidence, understanding of MFT models, conceptual abilities, and clinical practice. Additional results and discussion about incorporating common factors in MFT training are presented.

MFT Students’ Recount Experiences of Attending Phone and Online Overeaters Anonymous Meetings

The purpose of this study was to explore Marriage and Family Therapy students’ experiences attending Overeaters Anonymous (OA). Utilizing a qualitative survey administered in an addictions course at an institution located in a rural area of the United States, 18 marriage and family therapy (MFT) graduate students reflected on their participation in both online and telephone meetings. In this study, MFT students provided their perspectives regarding the feasible utilization of Overeaters Anonymous in clinical treatment, with an emphasis on the consideration of social support for clients who may reside in rural areas. Three major themes emerged which included (1) enlightenment through exposure; (2) OA as a viable adjunct to therapy; and (3) convenience and comfort. The study addressed recommendations for MFT education, clinical implications, and future research.

An Eye on the Future: Promoting MFT Master’s Programs to Potential Applicants

Successful recruitment of quality students remains a challenge to many mental health graduate programs. Marriage and family therapy (MFT) master’s programs, in particular, face significant barriers to effective and efficient student recruitment. At the same time, these programs’ ability to attract an excellent and diverse pool of applicants will affect both the research and practice of MFT. In this study, we conducted in-depth interviews with 21 U.S. undergraduate juniors and seniors from various majors and universities to learn their perceptions of MFT and MFT master’s programs and suggestions for enhancing MFT master’s programs’ recruitment efforts. Offering unique insight from potential applicants’ perspectives, participants identified five key factors that may increase their interest in applying to MFT master’s programs: application requirements, program information, more information in general, career outlook, and benefits of attending a MFT master’s program. To improve MFT master’s programs’ recruitment strategies, participants suggested active and early outreach, enhanced campus presence, recruiting advisors and professors in other disciplines as advocates, and involving MFTs, MFT students, and graduates in student recruitment. Based on these suggestions, we provide specific and practical recommendations for strengthening U.S. MFT master’s programs’ recruitment efforts.

Teaching General Systems Theory Concepts Through Open Space Technology: Reflections From Practice

While marriage and family therapists use a variety of theoretical models to conceptualize the change process, General Systems Theory (GST) is a foundational element of all marriage and family therapy (MFT) modalities. It is imperative that instructors provide an engaging learning experience when training MFT students in understanding systems concepts. One innovative strategy for helping students understand systems theory concepts is using Open Space Technology (OST), a learning and consultation methodology which gives voice to all participants involved in the learning process. OST utilizes any amount of time, space, and structural configuration needed for trainees to learn. The overall aim of this article is to outline the potential usefulness of OST as an innovative tool for teaching systemic principles related to GST by describing the application of OST to an Advanced Systems course. Clinicians, educators, and clinical trainees alike can use the descriptions herein to inform their own teaching and learn...

The Marriage of Couple and Relationship Education to the Practice of Marriage and Family Therapy: A Primer for Integrated Training

There is a high degree of overlap in the goals and strategies of couple and relationship education (CRE) and the practice of marriage and family therapy (MFT). Given these similarities, there is great potential benefit for the integration of MRE into the formal training of future MFTs. In this article, the authors focus on how CRE can complement both training in, and the practice of, MFT. In addition to highlighting both the similarities and differences between the disciplines, we explore potential benefits of this type of integration for both therapist and clients. We conclude by outlining a two-phase developmentally appropriate approach for integrating healthy relationship curricula into COAMFTE training programs. In phase one, MFT students get direct experience learning about, observing, and then directly facilitating CRE programs. In phase two, student therapists integrate CRE skills directly into their clinical practice of individual, couple, and family therapy.

Marriage and Family Therapy Trainees' Reports of Explicit Weight Bias.

Discrimination based on an individual's weight has been observed in health care, education, retail, and other public sectors (Puhl & Huer, Obesity, 17, 941, 2007). Such inequity, known as "weight bias," generates negative short-term and long-term consequences for the individuals that experience it (Puhl & Brownell, Weight bias in health care settings, 2007). Past research has shown that healthcare trainees exhibit weight bias (Phelan etal., Obesity, 22, 1201, 2014; Wigton & McGaghie, Journal of General Internal Medicine, 16, 262, 2001), yet little focus is given to weight bias in marriage and family therapy (MFT) education. The purpose of this study was to survey MFT students (N=162) to explore weight bias and how contextual factors associate with weight bias. Participants in MFT programs reported explicit weight bias, with specific contextual factors associating with more bias. Female participants reported more fear of gaining weight, and individuals who identified as overweight had higher rates of explicit weight bias. Contextual differences and implications for training programs are discussed.

Competency‐Based Training: Objective Structured Clinical Exercises (OSCE) in Marriage and Family Therapy

The field of marriage and family therapy (MFT) has recently engaged in the process of defining core competencies for the profession. Many MFT training programs are adapting their curriculum to develop more competency-based training strategies. The Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) is widely used in the medical profession to assess clinical competence. These examinations involve using simulated clinical situations as a tool in conducting summative evaluations of trainee competence. This article describes an adaptation of the OSCE procedures for competency-based training of MFT students. Instead of using the procedures as a summative examination as is typical in medical education, this article proposes how to use them as formative exercises in the development of student competence. The development of the OSCE is discussed, including "blueprinting," focused competencies, procedures, and feedback protocols. The article concludes with suggestions of how to continue the development of the OSCE for evaluation in MFT education.

Creating Synergy in Practice: Promoting Complementarity Between Evidence‐Based and Postmodern Approaches

Postmodern and evidence-based practice (EBP) are compared and contrasted with the primary aim of adapting evidence-based practice with a more flexible epistemological lens. We begin by reviewing the epistemological underpinnings of postmodern and EBP within the field of marriage and family therapy (MFT). We next discuss how these contrasting philosophies inform therapists' traits and practice in the context of translational research and practice-based evidence. Finally, we point toward some promising directions for a flexible adaptation of evidence-based practice in which both modern and postmodern clinicians can practice, and ways to incorporate some of these more flexible principles into the clinical training of MFT students.

Personal and Family Finance in the Marriage and Family Therapy Domain

The purpose of this study was to determine what changes have occurred in the past 20 years in accredited marriage and family therapy (MFT) programs in terms of student training and preparation for treating family financial concerns. MFT program directors (N = 18) and students (N = 102) responded to an emailed a web survey. Findings indicated that only two master’s degree programs, two doctoral programs, and one post-graduate program offered a personal or family finance course elective. A discussion about the implications this limited exposure to personal finance topics plays in professional training is provided.

What’s Wrong With These People? Clinicians’ Views of Clinical Couples

Marriage and family therapy (MFT) faculty and graduate students rated the "typical" or predictable behaviors of husbands or wives coming for therapy using the Georgia Marriage Q-sort. Scores were compared with previously published scores for both "ideal" couples (i.e., showing positive behaviors, attitudes, and problem-solving skills) and a sample of 136 nonclinical, community couples. A review of correlations between MFT raters' scores for clients and the scores for "ideal" or actual community husbands or wives indicated that clinicians have negative views of both clinical husbands and wives. Such negative views of clinical husbands and wives are particularly marked in scores by MFT faculty. MFT students had a similarly negative view of clinical husbands, but such views were not evident for clinical wives. Recommendations for MFT training and implications for future research are discussed.

Gender Biases and Therapists’ Conceptualization of Couple Difficulties

In spite of the fact that gender issues have played an important role in many family therapy training programs, little research has been developed to explore the effects of gender and gender biases in therapists’ conceptualizations of client problems. This study explores beginning and advanced marriage and family therapy (MFT) student’s inclusion of gender in the conceptualization of a clinical case. To examine clinician’s thinking, 32 therapists (18 beginning MFT students and 14 advanced MFT students) were asked to 1) view the first 20 minutes of an intake interview conducted by a sex therapist, and 2) identify the couple’s central issues. Qualitative and quantitative analyses were used to explore constructs associated with therapists considerations and inclusion of gender and cultural issues in their conceptualizations of marital difficulties. Results revealed that trained MFT students who considered gender may have analyzed gender issues more extensively than untrained MFT students. In addition, results of qualitative analysis of participant critiques revealed subtle forms of gender and cultural biases. Discussion focuses on how these biases, some of which are linked to clinical theory, can lead to differential expectations and inequality in the treatment of men and women in couple therapy. Implications for clinical training, curriculum development, and future research are also discussed.

The AAMFT-Head Start Training Partnership Project: enhancing MFT capacities beyond the family system.

This paper summarizes the experience of a two-year project to promote partnerships between 12 graduate Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT) training programs and their 12 local Head Start partners. The American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT) awarded 9 grants to MFT-Head Start partnerships that had established relationships with each other prior to the project. Three MFT-Head Start pairs that had no preexisting relationship but wanted to develop one received planning grants. The partnership project provided an exciting opportunity for MFT faculty and interns to integrate family systems theory into larger organizational settings and to enhance the capacity of MFTs to serve disadvantaged, low-income, culturally diverse families and the community agencies that work with them. Preparing MFT students to intervene and respond systemically both in organizations and with the families they serve represents a viable alternative to more traditional approaches to MFT that limit the focus to the family system. Survey results and interview data reflect the rich experiences of MFT faculty and supervisors, MFT interns, and Head Start staff. Implementation issues are discussed and recommendations are made to improve the collaboration between MFTs and community-based agencies such as Head Start.