Basic Family Therapy

The challenge facing the authors of texts that address the multiplicity and complexity of problems that may afflict families can be intimidating. Philip Barker has addressed this challenge head-on in each of the editions of this book. This task has been greatly facilitated by the contributions of the new co-author, Jeff Chang, and in this edition provides a clear, easily read and readily understandable introduction to family therapy. Much has happened in the field of family therapy since the fifth edition of __Basic Family Therapy__ was published in 2007.New developments covered in this book include: * Emotionally Focused Therapy * The Gottman approach to couples therapy * Mindfulness and psychotherapy * The common factors approach to psychotherapy and to family therapy * The increased emphasis on empirically supported treatments * High-conflict post-divorce parenting __Basic Family Therapy__ will be of value to readers new to family therapy and to those in the early stages of training. Despite the advances that have occurred since the first edition of this book appeared in 1981, the aims of Basic Family Therapy remain the same. These are to provide a clear, easily read and readily understandable introduction to family therapy, and to guide the reader to sources of further information by providing a comprehensive list of references. No prior knowledge of family therapy has been assumed and it is hoped that the book will be useful not only to those who are new to family therapy but also to those in the early phases of their training.

The fifth edition of this established text provides an unbiased, readable and up-to-date introduction to the field of family therapy. It recognises the various forms of dysfunction which may occur within individual families, often coloured by the culture of the society to which the family belongs. Against this complex backdrop and the various schools of thought in family therapy, the book synthesises the basic principles that apply to family therapy generally.

About the Author:
Philip Barker, MB, BS, FRCPsych, FRCP(C), is Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry at the University of Calgary, Canada

"...a well-established text that provides an unbiased, readable, and up-to-date introduction to the field of family therapy, covering all the main contemporary schools... presents a coherent model of therapy."

The challenge facing the authors of texts that address the multiplicity and complexity of problems that may afflict families can be intimidating. Philip Barker has addressed this challenge head-on in each of the editions of this book. This task has been greatly facilitated by the contributions of the new co-author, Jeff Chang, and in this edition provides a clear, easily read and readily understandable introduction to family therapy. Much has happened in the field of family therapy since the fifth edition of Basic Family Therapy was published in 2007. New developments covered in this book include: Emotionally Focused Therapy The Gottman approach to couples therapy Mindfulness and psychotherapy The common factors approach to psychotherapy and to family therapy The increased emphasis on empirically supported treatments High-conflict post-divorce parenting Basic Family Therapy will be of value to readers new to family therapy and to those in the early stages of training.

Family therapy has emerged, during the second half of the twentieth century as an often potent means of helping people and families with a variety of problems.