Journal of marital and family therapy最新文献

Romantic relationships can have additional complexities for individuals with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). The present study employed Reflexive Thematic Analysis (RTA) to explore what challenges adults with ADHD have experienced in their romantic relationships. Adults with ADHD (N = 355) answered an open-ended survey question asking if and how their ADHD had negatively impacted their romantic relationships. RTA resulted in four overarching themes and seven subthemes. Too Much and Never Enough: The Emotional Rollercoaster of Rejection Sensitivity and The Struggle for Stability: ADHD's Battle Between Passion and Distraction, encapsulated the relational challenges individuals with ADHD face associated with their ADHD traits. Between Partner and Caregiver: The Emotional and Practical Strain in ADHD Relationships highlighted the sometimes-unbalanced dynamic in relationships. From Chaos to Clarity: The Role of Self-Understanding in Love explored the detriments of lacking self-insight and the transformative impact of self-awareness. Findings underscore the complicated interplay between ADHD traits, self-perception, and romantic relationships.

The effectiveness of Emotionally Focused Couple Therapy (EFCT) has been well-documented, yet its application with Chinese couples remains underexplored. This is the first qualitative study examining therapists' perspectives on using EFCT with Chinese couples in clinical settings. Thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews with 20 therapists from mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong revealed that therapists viewed EFCT as a useful approach for Chinese couples. EFCT was reported to be helpful for couples with relationship distress and mental health concerns. However, therapists emphasized the importance of understanding cultural values and nuances that influence presenting problems. Overall, therapists recommended adjusting EFCT skills to better serve the needs of Chinese couples, understanding cultural impacts on couples' presenting problems, and incorporating additional components and training for therapists working with Chinese couples. These findings provide a foundation for culturally adapted EFCT, ensuring its relevance for Chinese couples while honoring their unique relational and cultural contexts.

The present study focuses on the positionings adopted by supervisors in systemic psychotherapy supervision within teams of therapists-in-training. The participants were five supervisors working with their respective teams. The study centers on the supervisors' positionings in relation to their supervisees and adopts an exploratory, qualitative methodology, structured as a single-case design with multiple units of analysis. The procedure involved the videorecording of pre-sessions, inter-sessions, and post-sessions. These recordings were transcribed and analyzed using discourse analysis. The material was reviewed multiple times. Sixteen distinct supervisor positionings were identified. Among these, confirming, directivity, and reflexivity emerged as three fundamental positionings. Additionally, a distinctive supervisory movement, termed “significant oscillation,” was identified. The analysis highlights supervision as a complex relational space where the supervisor's positioning within the interactive process plays a crucial role in the supervisees' learning.

Family therapy has been slowly but steadily growing on the African continent. Considering Africa's rich yet complex economic, political, and sociocultural history, it is essential for family therapy practitioners to integrate social justice (SJ) principles into their research, training, and practice of family therapy. By doing so, we can help foster more inclusive, culturally responsive, and meaningful support for the historically underrepresented communities of African descent. More importantly, we recommend that addressing SJ issues in the practice of family therapy in Africa be rooted in Afrocentric frameworks of care and practice. Drawing on existing literature, we introduce the African-Centered Wellness Model as a foundational framework for advancing socially just family therapy with African families. To demonstrate how the framework translates into clinical practice, two authors present case vignettes from their clinical work. A discussion of implications for integrating the principles of the model into research, training, and practice follows.

Families presenting for therapy after a divorce or separation who are in high-conflict present marriage and family therapists (MFTs) with some of the most complex and ethically challenging cases. Most co-parents settle disagreements amicably; however, 8–15% engage in conflict for years post-separation. Therapists must navigate overlapping clinical, legal, regulatory, and systemic domains—tasks for which most MFTs receive little training. This special issue of the Journal of Marital and Family Therapy addresses the urgent need for therapist competency and interdisciplinary collaboration with families in high conflict. Drawing on systemic and structural approaches, the featured articles examine factors that shape co-parenting quality, strategies for introducing new partners, reunification models, and the lived experiences of parents facing parent–child contact problems. Integrating research with practice-informed insights, this issue advocates for therapy with families in high-conflict as a clinical specialization and calls for advanced training, certification, and stronger collaboration among professionals.