Narrative Family Therapy Case Analysis

Frequently, adoptive families are struggling with issues of attachment, intimacy, and fear of abandonment (Suddeath, Kerwin, & Dugger, 2017). In fact, “Deep seated cultural beliefs in the values of kinship and maternal instinct cause us to view child relinquishment in terms of rejection and abandonment. Adoptees for which the adoption experience is a salient concern [may] tend to attribute relationship difficulties to that experience” (Feeney, Passmore, & Peterson, p. 141, 2007). Clearly, establishing a new family unit may be difficult due to unrealistic expectations, individual perceptions and social constructs (Shalay & Brownlee, 2007). As a result, adoptive families are at high risk for experiencing stress, relationship issues, and stigma

NFT is a postmodern treatment modality used to treat families (Suddeath, Kerwin, & Dugger, 2017). Generally, the techniques of NFT involve: eliciting the family’s story; recognizing cultural discourse; externalizing the problem; exploring the problems influence on the family; identifying exceptions; and finding a preferred narrative (Suddeath, Kerwin, & Dugger, 2017). In NFT, the therapist facilitates the development of alternative explanations to the family’s problems, so they may create new stories (Shalay & Brownlee, 2007). Research shows NFT to be effective in the treatment of adoptive and blended families (Stokes & Poulsen, 2014; Gold,

For example, in the case of T’s family, how the boy’s self-worth is affected by society’s negative views of children in the foster care system.
Next, the therapist applies the externalizing technique to help the family separate itself from its problems (Suddeath, Kerwin, & Dugger, 2017). Afterwards, the counselor explores the problem’s influence on the family. For instance, when an adoptive family is struggling with attachment issues, the therapist questions how a lack of intimacy has impacted the family, including influencing other aspects of their lives (Suddeath, Kerwin, & Dugger, 2017).
After that, the therapist aims to identify exceptions by naming times when the problem was less prevalent or absent. Also, by questioning the client on how and when they handled the problem in past with good results (Suddeath, Kerwin, & Dugger, 2017).
The final stage involves creating a new story to improve the family’s functioning (Suddeath, Kerwin, & Dugger, 2017). In addition, the family celebrates their new narrative by sharing it with friends and