Keith: A Case Study of Structural Family Therapy

This is an edited case presentation of marital therapy of a couple whose child was originally presented as the problem. Two primary themes are emphasized throughout the case. The first is that therapy consists of stages involving critical transitional points that need to be appropriately timed. The second is the use of a task to bring about structural realignment within the family. Excerpts were chosen because they clearly represent the process of movement in the therapy, illustrating both the stages of therapy and the utilization of an assigned task by the therapist. Commentary on the case material is interspersed throughout transcriptions.