A Live, Interactive Webconference
Cost: This training is free but open only to supervisors and behavioral health professionals working in agencies contracted with CFBT
Friday, March 6, 2026, FBMHS Training Groups via Live Interactive Zoom
8:25am-12:40pm
In systemic therapies, a major focus of assessment when treating children and adolescents with severe emotional and behavioral problems is the relational context of the family. The link between family functioning and the course of child problems is well-established in the empirical literature. While there are numerous available questionnaires and rating scales for assessing family relationships, this workshop focuses primarily on informal direct clinical observation of family interactions. This training introduces a conceptual framework for describing dimensions of family structure originally developed by Salvador Minuchin and which still inform family assessment in evidence-based family therapy models, as well as the promising practice, Eco-Systemic Structural Family Therapy (ESFT). The structural concepts introduced and described in this workshop include subsystem boundaries, hierarchy and power, and closeness distance.
An overarching goal of this training is to help therapists working in intensive, in-home treatment programs to recognize structural patterns organizing parent-child relationships which have been linked to exacerbation of child problems in the empirical literature. These broad patterns include enmeshment, under organization, and coercive/authoritarian parenting. A typology is introduced as an informal heuristic clinical tool for facilitating observations of family interactional patterns. Throughout the training, videotape examples are utilized to help participants identify and differentiate these different patterns. Implications for family treatment direction is provided for each of the three maladaptive structural patterns described in the training.
Objectives
As a result of attending this training, participants will be able to:
- Explain the nature of family structure
- Identify three maladaptive family structures linked to SED in children and adolescence.
- Describe interactional patterns that distinguish each maladaptive family structure
- Describe how family structure can be used to organize treatment
This is an intermediate level course. The target audience is behavioral health professionals working within Pennsylvania’s Family Based program and North Carolina’s Intensive In-Home Program. This is a live synchronous distance learning activity conducted in real time, allowing for simultaneous participation of participants and instructors from different locations.
Agenda
8:25am-10:30am: Focus on Objectives 1-2
10:30am-10:40am: Break
10:40am-12:40pm: Focus on Objectives 3-4
Frequently Asked Questions
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Guy Diamond, PhD is Professor Emeritus at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and formerly served as Associate Professor at Drexel University’s College of Nursing and Health Professions, where he retired in 2023. During his tenure at Drexel, he was the founding Director of the Center for Family Intervention Science (CFIS), leading pioneering research in family-based mental health treatments and suicide prevention. Dr. Diamond has authored over 150 peer-reviewed publications and book chapters, and has been awarded or contributed to over $30 million in research funding. His work has significantly advanced the development and dissemination of evidence-based interventions aimed at improving family dynamics and reducing suicide risk across diverse communities. On the prevention front, Dr. Diamond developed a comprehensive program for suicide prevention training, screening, and triage designed for implementation in non-behavioral health settings such as primary care and educational institutions. In the realm of treatment, he is best known for his leadership in the development and empirical validation of Attachment-Based Family Therapy (ABFT), a transdiagnostic model focused on repairing ruptures in family attachment to support youth experiencing depression and suicidal ideation. ABFT has been successfully adapted for children, adolescents, LGBTQ+ populations, and young adults, and is now practiced in clinical settings worldwide. Currently, Dr. Diamond serves as President of the ABFT International Training Institute, which promotes global dissemination and training in the ABFT model. In recognition of his contributions to the field, he was honored as the 2025 Family Psychologist of the Year by the American Psychological Association’s Division 43.