Social Policy & Administration

Promoting parental acceptance of bisexuality: A case study of attachment-based family therapy

Transcripts from a case with a religious, African-American family and their bisexual daughter outline the structure and sequence of attachment-based family therapy.

Authors

Maliha Ibrahim, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA (Currently, Assistant Professor, Jindal School of Psychology & Counselling, O.P. Jindal Global University, Sonipat, Haryana, India.)

Jody Russon, Center for Family Intervention Science, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.

Suzanne Levy, Center for Family Intervention Science, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.

Guy Diamond, Center for Family Intervention Science, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.

Summary

Attachment-based family therapy is an empirically supported, manualized treatment spanning over 15 years of research and clinical practice. Increasingly, research and clinical evidence emphasize the modification of family therapy models to meet the needs of diverse clients. 

Best practices require culturally-sensitive therapists to attend to issues of race, gender identity, sexual orientation, ethnicity, class, and ability. The ABFT model has been evolving to address the health disparities associated with marginalization and attend to the specialized needs of diverse families. 

This clinical case study demonstrates how ABFT clinicians must adopt an intersectional approach to be successful in building and sustaining relational repair. Transcripts from a case with a religious, African-American family and their bisexual daughter outline the structure and sequence of ABFT. 

An analysis of this case illustrates the impact of intersectionality on clinical processes and mechanisms of change.

Published in: Journal of Family Psychotherapy

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