Family Therapy and Group Play Case Conceptualization

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The goal is to help Jared with effective anger management so that he can stop hitting and swearing to the pre-kindergarten. The other goal is to help Jared improve in his delayed developmental areas. The participants in this process will be the therapist, Jared mother, aunt, grandmother and peer group therapy. The therapy will involve all people who have a personal touch with Jared. The materials to use may include representational drawing and games. The therapist through experiential components such as representational activities will help Jared recognize the gains he has made in his coping with anger management (Landreth, 2012). Use representational play to help Jared come up with better ways of dealing or coping with the anger. The therapist to actively engage him in drawing activities to help him improve his fine motor skills (O’Connor & Ammen, 2000).

The verbal components will involve assisting Jared to develop a good interaction strategy with his primary caregivers and also with his peers (O’Connor & Ammen, 2000). Make him understand that hitting and swearing at people is a bad behavior. In collaborative phase, talk with the primary caregiver first. Let them explain what they think could be the cause of this bizarre behavior. Jared has not been in contact with his parents, especially the father who is not there. The mother has not had a personal touch with his son which can explain the cause of his behavior. Encourage the mother to be close to his son (O’Connor & Ammen, 2000). Jared’s teacher and some of his peers should be involved. Jared should learn effective communication from other kids. Teach Jared appropriate ways of having his needs met (Landreth, 2012). The therapist should also help him improve his social skills and awareness of feelings. Arrange for meeting sessions with all the participants to assist Jared solve his problems.

The major strength of this theoretical approach is that it can solve the coping problems affecting many children during their developmental milestones (O’Connor & Ammen, 2000). It allows the therapist to conceptualize the best theory to meet various children’s needs. The theoretical approach also permits the collaboration of all relevant participants to solve children’s’ needs. Clients are taught the best ways of having their needs met. The weakness of this theoretical approach is that it may not be applicable to a range of cases (O’Connor & Ammen, 2000). The therapist must design a theoretical approach that is specific to a particular case. If the therapist did not understand the situation well, it could lead to misleading interventions that are not beneficial to the client (Landreth, 2012). The success of this theoretical approach depends on the commitment of all the participants.

References

Landreth, G. L. (2012). Play therapy: The art of the relationship. Routledge.

O’Connor, J.K & Ammen, S. (2000). Play Therapy Treatment Planning and Interventions: The Ecosystemic Model and Workbook. Academic Press. USA.