CPCE Family Systems and Counseling 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Virginia Satir's approach to family therapy is best classified as:
- Strategic family therapy
- Structural family therapy
- Experiential/humanistic family therapy (Correct answer)
- Cognitive-behavioral family therapy
Correct answer: Experiential/humanistic family therapy
Satir's conjoint family therapy is an experiential/humanistic approach emphasizing authentic communication, self-worth, and emotional expression.
Question 2: In Bateson's communication theory applied to family therapy, a 'double bind' refers to:
- Both parents simultaneously giving the same directive to a child
- Receiving contradictory messages at different levels where the recipient cannot comment on the contradiction (Correct answer)
- Two therapists providing simultaneous but conflicting interventions to a family
- A family system containing two identified patients
Correct answer: Receiving contradictory messages at different levels where the recipient cannot comment on the contradiction
A double bind involves contradictory messages at different communicational levels in which the recipient cannot escape or comment on the contradiction.
Question 3: In family systems theory, homeostasis primarily refers to:
- A family's tendency to maintain stability and resist change (Correct answer)
- The balanced distribution of power across family subsystems
- Equal sharing of household responsibilities among family members
- Emotional equilibrium achieved after successful family therapy
Correct answer: A family's tendency to maintain stability and resist change
Family homeostasis refers to the system's tendency to maintain its established patterns and resist change in order to preserve stability.
Question 4: Narrative therapy, developed by Michael White and David Epston, primarily focuses on:
- Restructuring family hierarchies and subsystem boundaries
- Re-authoring problem-saturated stories and externalizing problems from persons (Correct answer)
- Exploring multigenerational dysfunction through detailed genogram work
- Teaching structured communication and problem-solving skills to families
Correct answer: Re-authoring problem-saturated stories and externalizing problems from persons
Narrative therapy helps clients externalize problems and re-author their life narratives, reflecting the premise that 'the person is not the problem.'
Question 5: In solution-focused brief therapy (SFBT), the 'miracle question' is primarily used to:
- Identify the historical root causes of the family's presenting problem
- Help clients envision a preferred future without the problem and identify existing strengths (Correct answer)
- Challenge irrational beliefs the family holds about their situation
- Assess the family's current stage of readiness for therapeutic change
Correct answer: Help clients envision a preferred future without the problem and identify existing strengths
The miracle question asks clients to imagine a future where their problem is resolved, helping them identify goals and resources they already possess.
Question 6: Circular causality in family systems theory suggests that:
- Family problems are caused by one member's behavior and trace a linear path
- Family dysfunction follows predictable linear cause-and-effect sequences
- Family members mutually and recursively influence each other in ongoing patterns (Correct answer)
- Family dysfunction cycles across generations at predictable intervals
Correct answer: Family members mutually and recursively influence each other in ongoing patterns
Circular causality describes how family members continuously and mutually influence each other, contrasting with simple linear cause-and-effect explanations.
Question 7: Scapegoating in family systems refers to:
- A family member who avoids all conflict through emotional withdrawal and cutoff
- The process of one family member being blamed for the entire family's systemic problems (Correct answer)
- A child who takes on adult responsibilities to stabilize a dysfunctional family
- A parent who becomes excessively overinvolved in a child's achievements
Correct answer: The process of one family member being blamed for the entire family's systemic problems
Scapegoating occurs when one family member is designated as the source of all family problems, reducing systemic anxiety while avoiding the real underlying issues.
CPCE Family Systems and Counseling 2
Virginia Satir's approach to family therapy is best classified as: