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The application of a domains‐based analysis to family processes: implications for assessment and therapy
Author(s) -
Hill Jonathan,
Wren Bernadette,
Alderton Jane,
Burck Charlotte,
Kennedy Eilis,
Senior Rob,
Aslam Neelo,
Broyden Nichaela
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
journal of family therapy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.52
H-Index - 45
eISSN - 1467-6427
pISSN - 0163-4445
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-6427.2011.00568.x
Subject(s) - hierarchy , psychology , interpersonal communication , distress , domain (mathematical analysis) , action (physics) , social psychology , certainty , social relation , family therapy , focus (optics) , cognitive psychology , interpersonal relationship , developmental psychology , psychotherapist , epistemology , mathematical analysis , philosophy , physics , mathematics , quantum mechanics , economics , optics , market economy
Social domains are classes of interpersonal processes each with distinct procedural rules underpinning mutual understanding, emotion regulation and action. We describe the features of three domains of family life – safety, attachment and discipline/expectation – and contrast them with exploratory processes in terms of the emotions expressed, the role of certainty versus uncertainty, and the degree of hierarchy in an interaction. We argue that everything that people say and do in family life carries information about the type of interaction they are engaged in – that is, the domain. However, sometimes what they say or how they behave does not make the domain clear, or participants in the social interactions are not in the same domain (there is a domain mismatch). This may result in misunderstandings, irresolvable arguments or distress. We describe how it is possible to identify domains and judge whether they are clear and unclear, and matched and mismatched, in observed family interactions and in accounts of family processes. This then provides a focus for treatment and helps to define criteria for evaluating outcomes.