U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government, Department of Justice.

NCJRS Virtual Library

The Virtual Library houses over 235,000 criminal justice resources, including all known OJP works.
Click here to search the NCJRS Virtual Library

Review of the Literature on Family Therapy With Adolescents 1979-1987

NCJ Number
115476
Journal
Journal of Adolescence Volume: 11 Issue: 4 Dated: (December 1988) Pages: 309-334
Author(s)
D C Breunlin; C Breunlin; D L Kearns; W P Russell
Date Published
1988
Length
26 pages
Annotation
This update of an original review of the literature on family therapy approaches to adolescent disturbances addresses significant developments in theory, practice, and research, and highlights new themes and continuing trends in the literature on family therapy with adolescents.
Abstract
A primary change in the literature from 1979 to 1987 has been quantitative, as a great number of articles have been written on a continually expanding array of presenting complaints. The review also indicates that a full range of family therapy models has been represented in the literature since 1979. Generally, the family therapy models described in the original review have continued to receive attention. It is clear that family therapists working with adolescents have been willing to experiment with new theoretical developments as well. Especially noteworthy are the relatively recent applications of systemic family therapy (Milan model) to adolescent problems. A number of authors have suggested guidelines for planning and conducting family therapy with adolescents. Of particular interest are guidelines organized around such concepts as 'stages' or 'family typology.' Outcome studies suggest that family therapy with adolescents is a viable treatment approach which in many instances produces results exceeding those obtained with traditional treatments. 131 references.