"Introduction "Why do you do that?" "Why does our family insist on doing things that way?" Questions about people's behaviors are the essence of social science inquiry. The focus may be on individuals, families, social groups, communities, or cultures. To engage in the process of social science inquiry, you need two things: research and theory. Before we enter into a discussion of social science theory, specifically family theory, we first must have a discussion about theory in general"--
This was a textbook for a class, but it was still sooo helpful for touching on the different theories in family therapy. Really good information in each of the theory chapters. Loved the term breakdowns they did for each theory. Their chapter in family systems describing the cybernetic model is the only material that has ever helped me actually conceptualize cybernetics! Also ecological systems theory and the family stress model… woo! Complicated stuff but this book really helped me understand it even after already learning about some of these things before.
This book offers a valuable resource for any student studying marriage and family and therapy. Hamon, Ingolsby, Miller and Smith summarize the many theories and perspectives presented for the practice of therapy with families. These summaries include important information, such as research, limitations, concepts and applications of each theory. I find this book to be a helpful reference and I would recommend it to anyone going into the field.