Select a population that is of special interest to you (e.g., families with young children where there’s been child abuse, families with a gay adolescent, immigrant families [specific immigrant group], or families dealing with substance abuse).

Select a population that is of special interest to you (e.g., families with young children where there’s been child abuse, families with a gay adolescent, immigrant families [specific immigrant group], or families dealing with substance abuse). You will read literature on your specific population, focusing on issues or characteristics that could impact engagement and beginning therapy with such families (you may also wish to interview key informants, e.g., families, providers, community representatives). For example, some families are very boundaried and do not discuss family issues with outsiders; other families are very active, verbal, and quick to demonstrate their emotions. These family styles would impact engagement and beginning therapy. Although the literature you find may not focus specifically on engagement, you should search for readings that describe characteristics of your populations of interest and/or clinical articles that discuss the process of treatment with such families.

You will then integrate your research with class and field learning on family systems engagement in a 4-5 page paper (maximum) that reports on the literature (2-3 pages) and then presents your own protocol for engagement of families from your selected populations (2 pages). Do not summarize articles paragraph by paragraph, but offer an integrated review of what you found in your reading. Please look at some of the Introductory/Literature Review sections of published articles from the class and model your integrated review on that style. You will lose credit if you summarize articles paragraph by paragraph.

Begin the paper by describing your population of interest. State specifically what you find special and interesting about that population (1 paragraph).
Next offer an integrated review of literature relevant for your population, describing the types of families, cultural style, likely issues in treatment, and known effective approaches for working with these types of families (if available). At least seven articles outside of class reading must be used and cited according to APA style. In addition, you may also use readings from the syllabus.
In the second half of the paper describe specific strategies for working with your chosen population.
Guidelines will be further clarified in live classrooms. Your population selection requires instructor’s approval. You are to write a sentence or two on your specific interest and selected group for instructor approval: due by the 2nd week. This requirement may be met with a brief email.
This assignment will provide the opportunity to demonstrate your knowledge, values, and skills in Professional Identity, Critical Thinking, Diversity and Practice, Research-Based Practice and Engagement, Assessment, Intervention, and Evaluation in clinical practice.

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