Using the References listed below, please provide all the in-text citations in the different paragraphs on the information provided below on Strategic Family Therapy (SFT).

Strategic Family Therapy (SFT) Overview:

Strategic Family Therapy is a brief, goal-oriented therapeutic approach that focuses on altering interactional patterns within a family to resolve dysfunction. Developed by Jay Haley and others at the Mental Research Institute, SFT concentrates on the family's current problems, aiming to shift behaviors rather than explore underlying causes. The therapist takes an active role, using specific interventions to influence family dynamics and promote change.

Intervention Strategies in SFT

Reframing

• Definition: Reframing involves changing the way individuals perceive their problems by presenting them in a different light, usually in a more positive or manageable way.
• When to use: This technique is particularly effective when family members are locked into negative perceptions of each other, as in Charles blaming Laura and Laura feeling defensive.
• Application in the vignette: The therapist could reframe Charles' frustration, helping him view Laura's preoccupation with work and family not as neglect, but as a form of care and responsibility for the family. For instance, "Laura's dedication to her work and family could be seen as her way of showing love and ensuring stability for all of you."

Directive

• Definition: Directives are specific tasks or instructions the therapist gives the family to complete between sessions. These tasks are designed to break negative patterns of behavior.
• When to use: Directives are used when the therapist identifies specific behaviors that contribute to family issues, like communication breakdowns or avoidance patterns.
• Application in the vignette: The therapist might give Charles and Laura a directive to schedule 30 minutes of daily conversation focused on their relationship, without discussing work or the children. This would help them rebuild emotional intimacy.

Paradox

• Definition: Paradoxical interventions involve prescribing the symptom or exaggerating it to an extreme. The paradox forces the family to rethink their automatic responses, often making them see the problem as less compelling.
• When to use: This technique works well when resistance to change is high, or when family members are engaging in dysfunctional behaviors they don't want to stop.
• Application in the vignette: The therapist could tell Charles to continue blaming Laura for a few days, but this time, to express his blame loudly and frequently. The absurdity of this directive may lead Charles to reflect on his behavior and reduce the blaming.

Ordeals

• Definition: Ordeals are interventions where the therapist assigns tasks that are more difficult than the problem behavior, making it easier to change than to continue the dysfunctional pattern.
• When to use: Ordeals work when clients are stuck in a behavior they can control but resist changing due to secondary gains (such as attention or emotional support).
• Application in the vignette: The therapist might suggest that every time Charles feels neglected by Laura, he must take on a household chore that Laura typically does (e.g., cooking dinner). This ordeal would highlight how much Laura is already managing and give Charles a tangible way to contribute to the family.

Pretend

• Definition: The pretend technique involves asking family members to act as if the problem doesn't exist, or to pretend to engage in the problematic behavior in a controlled way.
• When to use: This strategy is useful when emotions are intense, and direct confrontation would lead to defensiveness. It allows the family to experiment with new ways of interacting without feeling pressured.
• Application in the vignette: The therapist could ask Laura to pretend for one day that she has forgiven Charles and ask Charles to pretend that he feels fully supported by Laura. This allows both to experience what a healed relationship might feel like without the emotional burden of doing it "for real."

Positioning

• Definition: Positioning involves taking an exaggerated stance on a family member's behavior to bring about change. It's a more extreme form of reframing where the therapist emphasizes the negative consequences of maintaining the current behavior.
• When to use: Positioning is helpful when family members are entrenched in their views, and the therapist needs to push them toward reevaluating their stance.
• Application in the vignette: The therapist might take Charles' statement about Laura's neglect to the extreme, suggesting that if Laura continues to "ignore him," their relationship is destined for failure. This could provoke Charles into reflecting on his own actions and motivate him to address his role in the conflict.

Explanation:

The information above is only a guide for you to answer the task. You can use this to help you answer the task. References you can use include:

• Guttman, H. A. (2020). Strategic Family Therapy: A Problem-Centered Approach. Journal of Family Therapy, 42(4), 419-438. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6427.2020.00562.x
• Haley, J., & Richeport-Haley, M. (2018). Directive family therapy. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315275453
• Nichols, M. P. (2021). The essentials of family therapy (7th ed.). Pearson.
• Vetlesen, A. J. (2019). Family intervention strategies in systemic therapy: Evidence from randomized trials. Journal of Family Psychology, 33(5), 637-647. https://doi.org/10.1037/fam0000549
• Watzlawick, P., Weakland, J. H., & Fisch, R. (2019). Change: Principles of problem formation and problem resolution. W.W. Norton & Company.