Psychodynamic Influences on Contemporary Family Therapy

Matthew Nilsson; Erin Belfort

doi:10.1016/j.chc.2025.02.002

Psychodynamic Influences on Contemporary Family Therapy

Child Adolesc Psychiatr Clin N Am. 2025 Jul;34(3):435-443. doi: 10.1016/j.chc.2025.02.002. Epub 2025 Mar 26.

Authors

Matthew Nilsson¹, Erin Belfort²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Outpatient Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Maine Medical Center, Portland, ME, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Tufts University School of Medicine, Maine Medical Center, 66 Bramhall Street, Portland, ME 04102, USA.
² Department of Psychiatry, Tufts University School of Medicine, Maine Medical Center, 66 Bramhall Street, Portland, ME 04102, USA. Electronic address: erin.belfort@gmail.com.

PMID: 40516954
DOI: 10.1016/j.chc.2025.02.002

Abstract

Family therapy endeavors to return patients to optimal health and functioning by working within the context of their family systems. Family therapy has deep roots in psychoanalytic theory and practice, notably drawing on ideas from attachment theory, object-relations theory, self-psychology, and mentalization. In family therapy, the therapist instead holds a hopeful stance that the family system is capable of change and positions itself as an appreciative ally, recognizing that changes in emotional reactivity or behavior in family members lead to systemic shifts in patterns and behaviors within the family system.

Keywords: Family systems; Family therapy; Psychodynamic theory.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Child
Family Therapy* / methods
Humans
Object Attachment
Psychoanalytic Theory
Psychotherapy, Psychodynamic* / methods