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6 June 2008
NO 1306
Intergenerational work
Family therapy is based on the notion that an individual's problems are best understood when examined in the contexts of the nuclear family and the extended family. There is a growing recognition by child therapists in general that positive behavioral changes may be brought about more effectively by influencing the child's environment rather than by attempting to control the child's behavior directly (Schaefer & Briesmeister, 1989). Many family therapists have recognized that " . . . without engaging the children in a meaningful interchange across the generations, there can be no family therapy" (Ackerman, 1970, p. 407). Proponents of family therapy have developed therapeutic methods that address the needs of the entire family system and build on family strengths.
Recognition of the importance of play for children has led some family therapists, such as Whitaker (1982), to blend play and family therapy approaches. The integration of play elements into family therapy sessions allows children to actively participate in ways that accommodate their chronological age and developmental capabilities. The introduction of play also provides a nonverbal pathway for children through which they may communicate their perceptions and observations.
Some family therapists have adapted both
structured and non-directive family therapy approaches to include
grandparents. Although Bowen (1966) did not involve grandparents
directly in the treatment
process, he did assign to each of the parents one or more tasks to be
completed with their own family. Framo (1976) shifted the focus from
problems between parents and children to the marital relationship
between the parents and their relationships with their family of origin.
Ingersoll-Dayton, Arndt, and Stevens (1988) found that family therapy
approaches that involved at least three generations of family members
resulted in more positive outcomes for family members than those with
two.
There is little research literature regarding the ways in which grandparents may influence parenting behaviors in their adult children or influence specific behaviors in their grandchildren. Although studies have been done of a variety of intergenerational programs, the programs being studied usually include older adults and children who are not related to them. This general approach is based upon the beliefs that contact with extended family members is limited and that intergenerational contact must now be consciously orchestrated (Waters, 1991).
Ingersoll-Dayton, Arndt, and Stevens (1988) examined differences among three separate family therapy approaches. The first of these was a traditional, two-generational family intervention that included only parents and children. In the second, therapists met with parents and children in family therapy sessions but encouraged members of the family to maintain contact with grandparents outside of these sessions. The majority of these out-of-session contacts involved conversations between parents and grandparents that focused on prior unresolved issues or on ways in which the grandparents could offer emotional support to the parents. In the third approach, grandparents were invited to participate in family therapy sessions along with parents and children. The results obtained by Ingersoll-Dayton et al. showed that using a three generational approach that included out-of-session contact with grandparents led to more families accomplishing their treatment goals than did using either the two generational family therapy approach or the three generational approach that involved grandparents in-session only.
Treatment goals tend to focus on facilitating change in two areas: (a) helping parents to resolve their children's behavior problems, such as aggressive and withdrawn behaviors, and (b) assisting parents to provide environments that facilitate growth and development. Typically, growth and development are measured by the families' perceptions of the overall functioning of the family unit, the "manageability" of their children, and parents' affect toward the children.
MERLE D. GRIFF
Griff, Merle D. (1999). Intergenerational play
therapy: The influence of grandparents in family systems. In
Intergenerational programs: Understanding what we have created.
Child and Youth Series, 20, 1/2. pp. 64-66.
REFERENCES
Ackerman, N. W. (1970). Child participation in family therapy. Family Process, 9, 4. pp. 403-410.
Bowen, M. (1966). The use of family theory in clinical practice. Comprehensive Psychiatry, 7. pp. 345-374.
Framo, J. L. (1976). Family of origin as a therapeutic resource for adults in marital and family therapy: You can and should go home again. Family Process, 15. pp. 753-771.
Ingersoll-Dayton, B., Arndt, B., & Stevens, D. (1988). Involving grandparents in family therapy. Social Casework: The Journal of Contemporary Social Work. pp. 280-289.
Schaefer, C. & Briesmeister, J. M. (1989). Handbook of parent training. New York. John Wiley & Sons.
Waters, R. (1991, October). Young and old alike. Parenting. pp. 74-79.
Whitaker, C. A. (1982). A family is a four-dimensional relationship. In J. R. Neil & D. P. Kniskern (Eds.). From psyche to system. New York. Guilford Press. (pp. 185-202).
