The Development of Family Therapy and Systemic Practice in Europe: Some Reflections and Concerns

Abstract

This paper outlines the development of pan European systemic thinking and practice. This development has been enabled and supported with the establishment of the European Family Therapy Association (EFTA). EFTA has evolved over the last decade from an organisation of individual members to an organisation of organisations-representing also national associations of family therapy and family therapy training institutes across 28 European countries. There are three sections to this paper: (1) a brief summary of the development of family therapy practice in Europe; (2) a brief summary of the work of the national associations of family therapy in EFTA; and (3) a brief summary of current concerns of some senior family therapists and family therapy trainers within the EFTA organisation. © 2013 Springer Science+Business Media New York

Up Close: Family Therapy Challenges and Innovations Around the World

“…We can ask ourselves this same question in relation to the landscape of family and systemic therapy in the particular context in which we operate, although as MacFarlane describes above in relation to physical landscapes and their impact, this too may be “flickeringly unmappable” and hence difficult to decipher comprehensively. Borcsa, Hanks, and Vetere () have considered the development of family therapy across the European context and describe in a similar way how “single model approaches can be seen to cross the boundaries of family/individual conceptualizations, and extend themselves into the direction of cultural customs in a process of mutual influence ” (our emphasis). They go on to suggest that one of the important features in ensuring that models retain “cultural sensitivity and socio‐historical relevance” is the recognition of locally generated “practice‐based evidence”, emphasizing the influence of the local landscape upon practice development…”

“…Borcsa et al. () point out that across Europe, the popularity of this accreditation can be seen as the success of family systems thinking—its recognized relevance and applicability to all health and social care professionals in private, voluntary, and public sector services.…”

Thematic review of family therapy journals in 2013

“…There was a special issue of Contemporary Family Therapy on international developments, with articles tracing the growth of family therapy in Europe (Borcsa et al . ), the UK (Stratton and Lask, ), Ireland (Carr, ), Germany (Retzlaff, ), Greece (Tseliou, ), Turkey (Arduman, ), Italy (Manfrida et al . ), Norway (Jensen, ), Portugal (Relvas et al .…”

“…There was a special issue of Contemporary Family Therapy on international developments, with articles tracing the growth of family therapy in Europe (Borcsa et al 2013), the UK , Ireland (Carr, 2013), Germany (Retzlaff, 2013), Greece (Tseliou, 2013b), Turkey (Arduman, 2013), Italy (Manfrida et al 2013), Norway (Jensen, 2013), Portugal (Relvas et al 2013), the Czech Republic (Skorunka and Hajná, 2013), Romania (Kónya and Kónya, 2013), Poland (Jozefik et al 2013), Australia (Moloney, 2013), South America (Herscovici et al 2013), Canada (McLuckie et al 2013, Taiwan (Chao and Huang, 2013), South Korea (Lee et al 2013), Hong Kong (Wong and Ma, 2013) and China (Deng et al 2013). This special issue of Contemporary Family Therapy highlights the international scope of the family therapy movement.…”

Researching what we practice—The paradigm of systemic family research: Part 2

“…Observation of this updated iteration of the paradigm would enable the application of relevant systemic research methods that coincide with the goals of a multitude of organizations that promote the interest of systemic therapy around the world (e.g., International Family Therapy Organization [IFTA], American Family Therapy Association [AAFT], European Family Therapy Association [EFTA]) (Lyness, 2020; Northey, 2009). All family therapy organizations share a commitment that emphasizes scientific and rigorous training standards, and in some countries, the job of the family therapist is an established profession, while in others efforts are ongoing to obtain recognition and statutory licensing (Borcsa et al, 2013; Józefik et al, 2013; Lee et al, 2013; Moloney, 2013; Northey, 2009; Relvas et al, 2013; Wagenaar & Baars, 2012; Welter‐Enderlin, 2005). EFTA formulates these as efforts “to achieve recognition for family and systemic therapy as a distinct, scientifically‐based form of psychotherapy practice and to ensure rigorous standards of training and professional practice throughout Europe” (EFTA Training Standards, Section 2.1).…”