What Are Family Therapy & Family Counseling? 

Family therapists recognize that changing a family system (usually) means disrupting existing relationship patterns and interpersonal communications.

While family therapists adopt many approaches, they are each typically underpinned by the following four principles:

• Family members are intimately connected, so therapy must focus on the beliefs of every member.
• Over time, family members living in close proximity “set up patterns of interacting made up of relatively stable sequences of speech and behavior."
• The presenting problem’s context typically comprises the “interactions, beliefs, and behaviors that therapists observe and engage with” and can be considered the cause and effect.
• Family problems are often the result of challenges resulting from facing environmental shifts or life changes.

Family therapy and family counseling are closely related terms and often used interchangeably, but with the latter sometimes used as a broader term encompassing various therapeutic approaches and techniques adopted by psychologists, social workers, and other professionals to enhance communication, resolve conflict, and support families facing challenges.