Utilizing Simulated Families and Live Supervision to Stimulate Skill Development of Family Therapists

Abstract

Simulated families and live supervision are used to stimulate skill development among family therapists. This article synthesizes current thought and expands on previous descriptions by (a) indicating family therapy skills that can be taught with the use of simulation, (b) outlining a process of preparing students for the simulated family interview, (c) reviewing supervisory interventions that can be used during the interview, and (d) describing a procedure for conducting the postsession discussion. Counselor educators may want to consider the use of simulated families for graduate students interested in developing family therapist skills.

Three Supervision Modalities for Training Marital and Family Counselors

“…If videotape is reviewed in a group setting, a simulated family might be developed with the help of the group members and the supervisee could practice establishing an alliance with the father. (See West [1984] for a discussion of using simulated families.) Thus, when using videotape, supplementary methods (e.g., role play and reinforcing appropriate supervisee behavior) can also be used to increase the development of executive skills.…”

Simulation as a tool in family therapy research

“…Family therapy training programmes make extensive use of family simulation (Dollinger, 1989;Fulmer, 1983;Jessee and L' Abate, 1981;Lee, 1986;Rich and Sampson, 1990;Weingarten, 1979;West, 1984), with various simulation training techniques and programmes described in the literature. Raasoch and Laqueur (1979) claimed the following benefits: intensifying the involvement of the trainees, shortening training time, illustrating family theory, and augmenting the trainees' identification with various family roles.…”