LPC Couples and Family Counseling 2 — Questions and Answers

Question 1: Salvador Minuchin described 'enmeshment' in family systems as a boundary style characterized by:

Rigid, impenetrable boundaries preventing family members from supporting one another
Diffuse boundaries where family members are overly involved and individual autonomy is underdeveloped (Correct answer)
Clear, flexible boundaries that permit appropriate connection and individuation
Triangulated boundaries involving extended family in the nuclear family's conflicts

Correct answer: Diffuse boundaries where family members are overly involved and individual autonomy is underdeveloped

Enmeshment describes diffuse boundaries where members are overly intertwined, limiting individual autonomy and differentiation, often seen as over-closeness or lack of privacy.

Minuchin placed boundaries on a continuum from diffuse (enmeshed) to rigid (disengaged). Enmeshed families have diffuse boundaries where members' identities are merged, emotional contagion spreads rapidly, and individual differentiation is stifled. Disengaged families have rigid boundaries resulting in emotional disconnection and failure to provide support. Clear boundaries allow appropriate autonomy and connection simultaneously. Both extremes can maintain symptom patterns.

Question 2: Strategic family therapy, associated with Jay Haley and Cloe Madanes, uses which of the following distinctive techniques?

Genogram construction and intergenerational exploration
Paradoxical directives and prescribing the symptom (Correct answer)
Collaborative narrative externalizing conversations
Psychoeducation and skills training for family members

Correct answer: Paradoxical directives and prescribing the symptom

Strategic family therapy uses paradoxical directives (e.g., prescribing the symptom) to disrupt entrenched patterns, leverage resistance, and create systemic change.

Strategic therapy is problem-focused and therapist-directive. Jay Haley and Cloe Madanes developed a range of techniques including: prescribing the symptom (telling the family to perform the problematic behavior intentionally, making it less automatic), paradoxical injunctions ('don't change too fast'), ordeals (making the symptom more work than its worth), and reframing. These techniques interrupt rigid interaction patterns and leverage the family's natural resistance to outside control.

Question 3: Virginia Satir's communication theory identifies which mode as reflecting self-blame and self-deprecation under stress?

Blaming
Placating (Correct answer)
Computing
Distracting

Correct answer: Placating

In Satir's model, the placating stance involves agreeing with others, self-deprecating, and blaming oneself in an attempt to maintain peace and avoid conflict.

Satir identified five communication stances used under stress: (1) Placating — agreeing, appeasing, self-blaming; (2) Blaming — criticizing others, deflecting responsibility; (3) Super-reasonable/Computing — intellectual, detached from emotions; (4) Irrelevant/Distracting — shifting topics, acting out; (5) Leveling/Flowing — congruent, direct, honest (the functional stance). Satir's therapy aimed to help family members move toward congruent communication by building self-esteem and awareness.

Question 4: In couples counseling, Sternberg's Triangular Theory of Love identifies the three components of complete (consummate) love as:

Trust, respect, and communication
Passion, intimacy, and commitment (Correct answer)
Attraction, companionship, and loyalty
Infatuation, attachment, and fondness

Correct answer: Passion, intimacy, and commitment

Sternberg's theory identifies passion (physical attraction), intimacy (emotional closeness), and commitment (decision to maintain the relationship) as the three components of love.

Sternberg's Triangular Theory of Love (1986) posits that love has three components: Intimacy (feelings of closeness, connection, and bondedness), Passion (romantic and sexual attraction, arousal), and Commitment (the decision to love and maintain that love). Different combinations of these components produce different types of love: Infatuation (passion only), Companionate love (intimacy + commitment), Romantic love (passion + intimacy), and Consummate love (all three). This framework guides assessment and intervention in couples therapy.

Question 5: Narrative family therapy, developed by White and Epston, works to help families by:

Prescribing behavioral homework to change interactional patterns
Externalizing problems and co-authoring preferred identity narratives (Correct answer)
Analyzing family members' dreams and unconscious dynamics
Restructuring boundaries and hierarchies within the family system

Correct answer: Externalizing problems and co-authoring preferred identity narratives

Narrative family therapy externalizes the problem as separate from the person, explores 'unique outcomes,' and co-creates preferred stories that support new family identities.

Michael White and David Epston developed narrative therapy in Australia and New Zealand. By externalizing the problem (e.g., 'Anorexia' or 'The Worry'), families can unite against the problem rather than identifying a member as the problem. Therapists look for 'unique outcomes' — times when the problem didn't dominate — to build an alternative, preferred story. Therapeutic documents (letters, certificates, archives) are often used to reinforce new narratives.

Question 6: The Gottman Sound Relationship House theory identifies 'trust and commitment' as which level of the house?

The foundation
The top floor (Correct answer)
The middle floor
The roof

Correct answer: The top floor

In Gottman's Sound Relationship House, Trust and Commitment form the walls and roof at the top, representing the ultimate relationship security that encompasses all other levels.

Gottman's Sound Relationship House model describes seven components arranged vertically: (1) Build Love Maps (foundation), (2) Share Fondness and Admiration, (3) Turn Toward Each Other, (4) Positive Perspective, (5) Manage Conflict, (6) Make Life Dreams Come True, (7) Create Shared Meaning. Trust and Commitment are the walls and roof that encompass all other levels. The therapy focuses on strengthening each level, as deficits at lower levels undermine the stability of those above.

LPC Couples and Family Counseling 2

Salvador Minuchin described 'enmeshment' in family systems as a boundary style characterized by: