NCJ Number
150009
Journal
American Journal of Family Therapy Volume: 22 Issue: 2 Dated: (Summer 1994) Pages: 156-164
Date Published
1994
Length
9 pages
Annotation
This study examines the relationship between a therapist's verbal behavior and family cooperation and resistance during the second session of family therapy with juvenile delinquents.
Abstract
All of the participating families, which consisted of an adolescent and at least one parent, had been referred to the Second Judicial District Court Youth and Family Counseling Clinic for family dysfunction and delinquent adolescent behavior. Second sessions were identified so as to sample a point relatively early in the therapeutic process. The first 12 families referred to the agency that agreed to participate in the study and that also had been recorded on videotape during their second session were identified for inclusion in this study. All of the families were treated by the same male therapist. Three 10-minute segments (the first, middle, and last 10 minutes) of the second-session videotapes were coded using the TPC. The seven therapist codes included in this system are support, teaching, confronting, facilitating, reframing, structuring, and questioning. The eight client codes subsumed under resistance are confronting, challenging, or disagreeing; hopelessness, blaming, or complaining; defending self or others; sidetracking; own agenda; answering for; not answering; and disqualifying. The sequential analysis found that the therpist's "support" and "teaching" behaviors were associated with significant increases in the likelihood of family cooperation. 1 table and 20 references