Filial therapy

Domain VIII · Creative & expressive arts therapies · Bernard G. Guerney Jr., Louise F. Guerney · 1964

What it is

Source note: the bibliographic details of Guerney 1964, L. Guerney 2000, VanFleet & Guerney 2003 and the VanFleet manual editions follow the reference lists of Ginsberg 2012, Ray 1995, Zubir et al. 2019 and Schumann 2002 and a library catalogue; the original group format (6-8 parents) and the…

Format

• Phases (individual-family model). The secondary sources give near-identical nine-step sequences, attributed to the Guerney/VanFleet model.
• Orientation and rationale. Explain premise, structure, likely course and what parents commit to; build a collaborative relationship with the whole family. Move on when parents understand and agree to attend and practise.

Who practises it, and how they are trained or regulated

• Skill training. Parents learn the four skills (structuring, empathic listening, child-centred imaginative play, limit setting) through brief teaching and mock play sessions, with prompting, modelling, reinforcement and shaping. Move on when parents can show the skills at a basic level in mock sessions.
• Original Guerney group sequence (as described by secondary sources). Screening of parent and child; a training group of six to eight parents of children aged about 3-10, using didactic instruction, demonstration, role-play and group discussion, in which parents' first play sessions are observed and discussed with feedback and no home practice is yet set; home "laboratory" play sessions once the parent's skill is…
• Overall length varies by version, and the spread is explained by which version is meant. The original open-ended Guerney training groups ran six to eighteen months at the therapist's judgement (Schumann 2002 ERIC Digest), which accounts for the 18-month figure for group filial therapy (Mullen, n.d.); the original programme is also described as about 12 months, later shortened to about 5-6 months (L. Guerney, 2000,…

Questions to explore with your client

• What drew you to it, and what are you hoping it will change?
• Is there physical contact? Was it explained beforehand, and do you feel free to say no or stop at any point?
• Does it involve any substance, plant preparation, remedy or supplement? Has your doctor or prescriber been told, especially about any medication you take?
• Does it involve fasting, a special diet or 'detox'? Have you discussed this with your doctor?
• Is it a group, retreat or community? How do they respond if someone wants to leave or raises a concern?
• Who runs it, and what training or registration do they hold?
• What actually happens in a session or meeting, and how often?
• What does it cost, and is there pressure to commit to more?
• How do you feel afterwards, in the hours and days that follow?
• Does it fit with, or clash with, the work we do here?

What practitioners of it watch for

• unrealistic plans; parents who skip from 30 minutes to 'whenever we can'.
• guilt, defensiveness, or hope for a quick fix. Name the timescale honestly.
• strong personal distress, trauma memories, or conflict between parents. These need their own space.
• electronic or rule-bound games that limit expression, and kits shared with siblings outside sessions.
• over-interpretation. Play themes are hypotheses to explore with parents, not evidence of abuse or diagnosis (see 4.17).

When to involve someone else

• New or worsening physical symptoms, or advice to stop or change prescribed medication: involve the client's doctor or prescriber.
• Signs of coercion, isolation from family and friends, escalating costs or secrecy: discuss openly and consider safeguarding.
• A crisis or thoughts of suicide: follow your crisis protocol. In the US, call or text 988; in the UK and Ireland, Samaritans on 116 123.

Drawn automatically from the guide's own sections. Stay curious: neither endorse nor dismiss what the client values, and check anything that matters against the full guide and its sources. Not medical advice.