Functional Family Therapy Techniques or FFT Model

There were times when the head of the family was considered supreme and his words were law for the family. Now the time has come when each member of the family wants to have a place for himself. All want to be equally accepted, respected and listened to in all matters. This often results in friction between members of a family and consequent division in families. As a result of this now the families are generally nuclear and not joint as they used to be some years back.

As we all know there is a solution to every problem. To manage these family issues ‘Functional Family Therapy Techniques’ came into existence. This is also called by experts as ‘FFT Model’. Following are some points related to this therapy.

It is the duty of the parents being head of family to maintain unity and goodwill amongst the members. If necessary the members should be encouraged to go in for counseling from an independent expert counselor so that the differences are sorted out in the right earnest. For establishment of cordiality in the family it is essential to have a formal or informal family meeting of all the members.

At the meeting all the members of the family should be allowed to discuss the affairs in a free and frank manner. Criticism of the senior members even by the junior most members should be taken in a sporting spirit. All grudges should be openly discussed. If still some differences remain another meeting be called and all the members should be asked to bring their expectations and grudges in writing. At the meeting these should be discussed one by one. Each member should have a right to speak on every matter.

All should listen with unbiased mind. Effort should be made to resolve the differences as far as possible. Rights, duties and obligations of all the members should be fixed with mutual consent. Effort should be made to respect the privacy of each member. No one should be allowed to peep into the private life of others. This way, major issues will be resolved.

Try to have regular family meetings. These should be on the pattern of the corporate board meetings where decisions are taken on majority basis with mutual consent. The goal of the family should be set which are naturally and primarily mutual respect, love and understanding. This should be achievable and with the consent of all. Once set, the effort should be to achieve the goal.