Structural Family Therapy: The Thinking Behind the Technique

A presentation of the beliefs and values that guide a structural family therapist’s understanding of problems and choice of interventions, illustrated by the discussion of a consultation with a family that is requesting that a daughter recently reunited with the family be placed again in foster care. Participants will increase their ability to look at problems as maintained by the relational dynamics of the family and the larger context, actively search for the family’s underutilized strengths, and empower the family by mobilizing their strengths to improve their relational dynamics.

Learning Objectives:

• Develop understanding of core beliefs and values guiding structural family therapy
• Develop the ability to identify the contextual and relational dynamics that maintain problematic family interactions
• Learn how to activate underutilized family strengths

Who Should Watch:

Mental health professionals, therapists, and social workers interested in systemic interventions and experiential methods in family therapy.

Meet Jorge Colapinto:

Jorge Colapinto, LMFT, is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with over four decades of experience as a clinician, teacher, and consultant in Structural Family Therapy. Originally from Argentina, he earned his psychology degree from the Universidad Nacional de Buenos Aires and moved to the U.S. in 1976, where he collaborated with Dr. Salvador Minuchin for nearly two decades.

Jorge is a longtime faculty member at the Ackerman Institute for the Family, where he directed the Foster Care Project and trained generations of family therapists. He has written extensively on Structural Family Therapy, family systems in social services, and clinical training. He is co-author of Working with Families of the Poor, now in its second edition and translated into multiple languages. Jorge is an AAMFT Approved Supervisor and a member of both AAMFT and AFTA.