Brief Strategic Family Therapy

Description

"Brief Strategic Family Therapy (BSFT) is a brief intervention used to treat adolescent drug use that occurs with other problem behaviors such as conduct problems, oppositional behavior, delinquency, antisocial behavior, aggressive and violent behavior and risky sexual behavior" (DHS Manual, 2003, p 1). There are three basic principles to BSFT including family systems approach, patterns of interaction and planned interventions to change patterns of interactions. The two goals of BSFT including "symptom focus" which focuses on eliminating or reducing the adolescent use of drugs and associated problems, and "system focus" which aims to change the family interactions that are associated with the adolescents drug abuse. BFST is flexible and adaptable with treatment and can be found in a variety of service settings including mental health clinics and drug abuse treatment programs with modes of treatment implemented in outpatient, residential, day programs and aftercare treatment programs.

Population

The population best served utilizing BSFT intervention are children between the ages of 6-12 years old and adolescents between the ages of 13-17 years old--both male and female. The program was developed with for Hispanic families initially; however, has been adapted and tested with African American families. It has also been adapted for other ethnic populations including German and Swedish families. While BSFT has been used with Caucasian families the research is ongoing.

Length

The program is delivered in 8-12 weekly sessions for 1 to 1 1/2 hours per session either in the program office or in the client's home and, if necessary, sessions can occur more frequently if there is a crisis.

Training

Counselors should have an master's in social work, master's in marriage and family therapy and two additional years of clinical experience, or a bachelor's degree with extensive experience working with families. Counselors must be...