Strategic Family Therapy is a brief, goal-oriented therapeutic approach that focuses on solving specific problems within a family system. It was developed primarily by Jay Haley and influenced by the work of Salvador Minuchin (Structural Family Therapy). This model views problems as embedded in family interactions rather than just within individuals. I offer strategic family therapy interventions that are powerful and positive and designed to work fast. As you will see in the brief strategic family therapy example below, this approach works well for families facing a specific challenge or barrier. However, it is also used when a family is going through a transition.
I offer strategic family therapy for families with older children, including adults, and for specific dyands such as with therapy for mother-daughter relationships. The virtual therapy approach is often not the most effective for families with younger children. If you have specific questions, please feel free to contact me or schedule a consultation anytime.
Core Principles of Strategic Family Therapy Interventions 
- Problem-Focused: I target specific family issues rather than long-term personality changes.
- Systems Perspective: Problems are seen as part of ongoing family dynamics or communication patterns.
- Directive: I provide tasks or interventions in session and as homework to interrupt unhelpful cycles and patterns.
- Brief: Strategic Family Therapy is often short-term, focusing on solving immediate issues.
Strategic Family Therapy Interventions Commonly Used
- Reframing: I offer alternative ways of viewing family behaviors, changing how the problem is understood.
- Paradoxical Interventions: Prescribing the problematic behavior to help the family recognize its dysfunction.
- Directives: Assigning tasks or specific behaviors for family members to complete between sessions.
- Family Structure Focus: Identifying and shifting power dynamics or alliances that perpetuate conflict.
- Interrupting Patterns: Intervening in habitual family cycles, often by changing communication patterns or behaviors.
Goals of Strategic Family Therapy
Strategic Family Therapy’s goals are focused on solving problems by identifying and disrupting dysfunctional family patterns of interaction. I work to bring about rapid and practical change rather than a long-term exploration of the family’s history.
Here are the primary goals of brief strategic family therapy and examples of strategic family therapy interventions I use:
1. Solve the Presenting Problem
- The primary and immediate goal of brief strategic family therapy is to address the specific problem that brought the family to therapy.
- Example: If a child is acting out, the goal is to stop the disruptive behavior by changing family dynamics.
2. Interrupt Dysfunctional Patterns
- Brief strategic family therapy identifies recurring cycles or behaviors that maintain the problem and intervenes to break those patterns.
- Example: If parents react to a child’s tantrum by giving in, the therapist might direct the parents to respond differently to stop reinforcing the behavior.
3. Realign Family Hierarchies and Roles
- Brief strategic family therapy helps families establish healthy boundaries and roles, particularly when there is confusion in authority.
- Example: Empowering parents to reclaim authority in cases where children have taken control or alliances have been formed against one parent.
4. Promote Change Through Action
- Strategic Family Therapy is action-oriented, focusing on behavioral change rather than deep emotional insight.
- I give the family specific tasks or directives to experiment with new behaviors and interactions.
- Example: Assigning a task for a parent to stay calm during a child’s tantrum to change the escalation pattern.
5. Increase Family Flexibility
- Encouraging the family to adapt and be more flexible in their interactions makes it easier to address future problems.
- Example: Teaching family members new ways of communicating and problem-solving to prevent rigid patterns from returning.
6. Shift Perspectives (Reframing)
- Helping family members view problems and behaviors from a new perspective reduces blame and promotes understanding.
- Example: Reframing a child’s defiance as an attempt to gain attention or structure rather than simply bad behavior.
7. Empower the Family System
- Strengthening the family’s ability to solve problems independently by highlighting their existing strengths and resources.
- Example: Identifying times when the family successfully handled challenges and encouraging them to replicate those strategies.
8. Achieve Quick, Measurable Change
- Strategic Family Therapy aims for brief, targeted interventions that create observable and meaningful family functioning improvements.
- Example: Within a few sessions, a family may report reduced conflict, improved communication, or better behavior from a child.
Brief Strategic Family Therapy Summary
Strategic Family Therapy interventions are practical, action-oriented, and systemic. By addressing specific problems, interrupting patterns, and empowering families to change their behaviors, this approach fosters quick and sustainable improvements in family functioning
When Brief Strategic Family Therapy is Used
Strategic Family Therapy is often applied in:
- Adolescent problematic behaviors or sibling conflict
- Substance abuse interventions
- Parent-child conflicts, including when reward systems are not working
- Communication breakdowns in families
- Family transitions include children going to college, parents separating, or a new child being born.
- Adult child estrangement, especially when reconciliation is the goal.
This approach emphasizes my ability to observe, assess, and strategically intervene in ways tailored to the family’s specific needs. It is highly practical, emphasizing action and measurable progress rather than deeply exploring family history. For longstanding, engrained challenges, other approaches, such as Family Systems Therapy and Narrative Family Therapy, may be indicated.
Strategic Family Therapy Interventions
The Strategic Family Therapy Interventions I use are designed to directly address and resolve family problems by identifying and altering dysfunctional patterns of interaction. These interventions are directive, problem-focused, and goal-oriented, often involving specific tasks or strategies that help families interrupt problematic cycles. Below are some common strategic family therapy interventions:
Systemic Family Therapy Interventions List
1. Reframing
- Definition: Changing the way a problem or behavior is perceived by offering a new, more positive or neutral interpretation.
- Example: Instead of labeling a child’s misbehavior as “rebellious,” I might reframe it as an attempt to gain attention and connection.
- Goal: To reduce blame and shift the family’s understanding of the issue.
2. Prescribing the Symptom (Paradoxical Intervention)
- Definition: I “prescribe” the problematic behavior, encouraging the family or individual to engage intentionally.
- Example: A family is told to argue at specific times during the day. This may highlight the absurdity of the behavior or reduce its occurrence.
- Goal: To disrupt the family’s pattern and help them gain control over the behavior.
3. Directives
- Definition: Specific tasks or instructions are assigned to family members to change behavior or interaction patterns.
- Example: A parent might be asked to respond differently (e.g., staying calm) when a child acts out, or family members might be tasked with spending quality time together.
- Goal: To promote healthier behaviors and interactions outside of therapy sessions.
4. Ordeals
- Definition: Assigning a task that makes the problematic behavior or symptom more effortful or undesirable to continue.
- Example: If a teenager refuses to get out of bed, the therapist might suggest that the parent wakes them every hour through the night to “help them sleep better.”
- Goal: To make maintaining the symptom harder than resolving it.
5. Interrupting Patterns (Pattern Disruption)
- Definition: Intervening in repetitive family patterns to force change.
- Example: If a parent consistently nags a child to do homework and the child resists, the parent might be directed to stop nagging completely, breaking the cycle.
- Goal: To interrupt dysfunctional cycles and allow new, healthier patterns to emerge.
6. Circular Questioning
- Definition: Asking questions that help family members see the problem from different perspectives.
- Example: “What do you think your brother feels when you ignore him? How do you think that affects the rest of the family?”
- Goal: To increase awareness of relational dynamics and foster empathy.
7. Hierarchical Realignment
- Definition: Reorganizing family roles to restore proper boundaries and power structures.
- Example: Helping parents reclaim authority in families where children have taken control or formed alliances against one parent.
- Goal: To create healthier family hierarchies and boundaries.
8. Pretend Techniques
- Definition: Family members are asked to “pretend” to engage in a problematic behavior.
- Example: A child pretending to have a tantrum while parents “respond” calmly.
- Goal: To reduce the emotional charge of the behavior and allow the family to practice new, healthier responses.
9. Positive Connotation
- Definition: Assigning a positive or purposeful meaning to problematic behaviors.
- Example: A child’s refusal to do chores could be reframed as a way to test family limits and seek structure.
- Goal: To help families see behaviors as part of a system rather than blaming individuals.
10. Strategic Rituals
- Definition: Creating specific routines or rituals to address family problems.
- Example: Scheduling a “family problem-solving night” where everyone discusses issues constructively.
- Goal: To provide structure and promote healthier family interactions.
11. Metaphors and Symbolic Tasks
- Definition: Using stories, symbols, or metaphors to address family issues indirectly.
- Example: Comparing a family’s dynamic to a team that needs cooperation, highlighting the need for teamwork.
- Goal: To address resistance and promote insight in an indirect, non-threatening way.
Goals of Strategic Family Therapy Interventions
The overall aim of these interventions is to:
- Disrupt dysfunctional family patterns.
- Create new, healthier ways of interacting.
- Solve the presenting problem quickly and effectively.
Strategic Family Therapy relies on my ability to observe, analyze, and strategically intervene in ways that produce rapid change, empowering families to function in healthier and more productive ways.
Brief Strategic Family Therapy Case Example
Here is a case example illustrating the use of Brief Strategic Family Therapy interventions:
Case Overview
- Presenting Problem: A 15-year-old teenage boy, Jason, is skipping school and frequently arguing with his parents. The family reports constant tension, with Jason ignoring his father’s authority and siding with his mother, who often “rescues” him from punishment.
- Family System Dynamics:
- Jason has become the focus of the family’s problems.
- The father feels disrespected and powerless.
- The mother feels stuck between supporting Jason and managing the father’s frustrations.
- A triangulation dynamic has emerged, where Jason and his mother are aligned, leaving the father excluded.
Interventions Used
- Reframing the Problem
- I reframe Jason’s behavior to test family boundaries and seek attention rather than label him as “defiant” or “lazy.”
- “Jason isn’t ignoring his father to be bad; perhaps he’s asking for clearer guidance in a roundabout way.”
- Purpose: This reduces blame and creates a new perspective that positions Jason’s behavior as fixable.
- Directive: Changing Parental Responses
- I give the parents a clear task:
- Father: Instead of yelling when Jason skips school, calmly tell him: “I’m disappointed you skipped, and I expect you to make it up tomorrow.”
- Mother: Stop “rescuing” Jason from consequences and let the father take the lead in handling discipline.
- Purpose: This intervention shifts the family’s interactional patterns and reestablishes the father’s role as the authority figure.
- I give the parents a clear task:
- Prescribing the Symptom (Paradoxical Intervention)
- I instruct Jason’s parents to schedule arguments:
- “Every day at 6 p.m., I want you to argue about Jason skipping school, but only for 10 minutes.”
- Purpose: By making the arguments intentional, the family becomes aware of their unproductive behavior, often leading to fewer arguments.
- I instruct Jason’s parents to schedule arguments:
- Hierarchical Realignment
- I address the power dynamic by restructuring the parental hierarchy:
- The mother is directed to support the father in decisions, reinforcing a unified parental front.
- Jason is instructed to ask permission from both parents for privileges (e.g., going out).
- Purpose: This intervention restores parental authority and breaks the triangulation dynamic.
- I address the power dynamic by restructuring the parental hierarchy:
- Pattern Interruption
- I notice that Jason’s skipping school triggers his father’s outbursts, which are followed by the mother intervening.
- I ask the father to stay calm and assign Jason a small, manageable task as a consequence (e.g., washing dishes for the day).
- Purpose: Interrupt the predictable escalation pattern and replace it with calmer, solution-oriented responses.
Outcome
- After a few sessions, the family reports:
- Jason is skipping school less often and responding better to his father’s authority.
- The mother feels relieved to step back and support the father.
- Arguments have significantly decreased, and the parents present a unified front.
- The family system shifts toward healthier dynamics by disrupting dysfunctional patterns and using targeted interventions.
This case highlights how Brief Strategic Family Therapy interventions such as reframing, directives, hierarchical realignment, and paradoxical interventions can quickly and effectively address family issues by focusing on interactions and solutions.
Summary and My Work
I provide brief strategic family therapy to families where the children are adolescents or adults (including adult sibling therapy), often mixing in other approaches such as family systems therapy, emotionally focused family therapy, and narrative family therapy in my integrative psychological practice. It is often paired with solution-focused family therapy, which shares many of the same techniques. I have found this approach to be powerful and effective, particularly when challenges and barriers are not deeply engrained in the family dynamics and instead a point-in-time issue that has arisen.
If you have any questions about strategic family therapy and how it might work for your family, please feel free to contact me or schedule a consultation anytime.
