Expanding Systems Thinking: Incorporating Tools from Medical Sociology into MFT Education and Research

The field of marriage and family therapy has historically focused on dynamics within family systems, and at times the role of social and cultural factors external to the family. To date, however, little scholarship has examined how therapists themselves are embedded within a mental healthcare system...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of marital and family therapy 2019-04, Vol.45 (2), p.244-255
Main Authors: Heafner, Joy, Mauldin, Laura
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biomedical Research - education
Biomedical Research - methods
Cultural Context
Cultural factors
Cultural Influences
Education
Educational systems
Evidence-Based Practice - education
Evidence-Based Practice - methods
Family counseling
Family relations
Family therapy
Family Therapy - education
Family Therapy - methods
Formal organization
Health care
Health care policy
Health Insurance
Health services
Humans
Individual Needs
Interpersonal Relationship
Job Satisfaction
Managed care
Managed Care Programs
Marital Therapy - education
Marital Therapy - methods
Marriage
Medical diagnosis
Medical education
Medical schools
Medical sociology
Medicine
Mental Disorders - diagnosis
Mental health
Professional practice
Resistance (Psychology)
Social Action
Social dynamics
Social Environment
Social Structure
Sociology
Sociology - education
Sociology - methods
Systemic therapy
Systems Analysis
Therapists
Therapy
Work Environment
World Views
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Summary:The field of marriage and family therapy has historically focused on dynamics within family systems, and at times the role of social and cultural factors external to the family. To date, however, little scholarship has examined how therapists themselves are embedded within a mental healthcare system. The purpose of this article is to demonstrate how structural components of the mental healthcare system shape the practice of therapy. We draw from the field of medical sociology to illustrate how three dominant structures—managed care, diagnosis, and evidence‐based models—are intertwining and mutually reinforcing systems that have significant and long‐term implications for systemic therapists and researchers. We recommend incorporating a sociological understanding of such structures into MFT education and research.
ISSN:0194-472X
1752-0606
DOI:10.1111/jmft.12337