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What's the Use of Family Therapy?
Author(s) -
Carpenter John
Publication year - 1992
Publication title -
australian and new zealand journal of family therapy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.297
H-Index - 19
eISSN - 1467-8438
pISSN - 0814-723X
DOI - 10.1002/j.1467-8438.1992.tb00885.x
Subject(s) - family therapy , power (physics) , project commissioning , psychotherapist , professional association , psychology , engineering ethics , public relations , publishing , sociology , political science , law , engineering , physics , quantum mechanics
This paper, a plenary address to the Australian Family Therapy Conference, is concerned with the role of family therapy in society and the abuse of professional power. It is argued that family therapy is part of the medicalisation of marriage and the family, through which problems are defined — often inappropriately — as relationship problems and experts (therapists) are created. Aspects of professional power are identified; its pursuit is not in the interests of families, especially those with greatest needs. Proposals to tackle these obstacles are made regarding practice and training in therapy, and the management of professional power .