Family Therapy Assessment and Treatment Planning:
Two Case Studies

Pamela M. McCollam
New Haven

Abstract

Family therapy has become a common and important part of residential treatment. The Beavers System Model (Beavers & Hampson, 1990) was developed to provide a means to understand the systemic functioning of families. Two dimensions are used in the Model: (a) Family competence, ranging from severely dysfunctional to competent and (b) Family style, ranging from open (centripetal) to closed (centrifugal). The combination of these two dimensions creates nine different categories of family functioning. To illustrate its use in residential treatment, the families of two adolescent students were analyzed using the Beavers Systems Model. Information for these analyses were obtained from case reviews and qualitative interviews. Implications for using the Beavers System Model to assist in residential treatment are discussed.

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