Program Philosophy and Goals

Overview and purposes
Knowledge and skills promoted
Core ideas guiding the program
Educational objectives

Overview
Doctoral study in marital and family therapy at Loma Linda University is shaped by three themes:

A personal, interactive context for study:
At the core of our doctoral study is the opportunity for one-on-one interaction with dedicated faculty who are recognized experts in their areas of study. We purposefully select faculty who work as a team and care about students. We limit enrollment to keep class sizes small and education personal.
A positive, multi-systemic approach:
As a health-sciences institution, Loma Linda University attends to the whole individual--mind, body, and spirit. The marital and family therapy program emphasizes a multi-systemic approach that addresses the medical/biological, psychosocial, and spiritual aspects of human life within a systemic framework. We believe that relationships are the context in which change occurs. As people become more connected to each other and their communities, the potential for growth and healing are enhanced.
Community:
We seek to create a diverse community for advanced study in marital and family therapy that encourages the development of individual student strengths and allows a thoughtful, holistic integration of personal practices of faith and professional work.

Purposes

1) To develop scholar-practitioners who will advance theory, research, clinical practice, community involvement, and teaching in the field of Marriage and Family Therapy.
2) To prepare students for research, teaching, administration, supervisory, and clinical training positions in universities and training institutes and in health-care, school, legal, and community-based settings.

• The DMFT program will prepare students with expertise in program evaluation research methods.
• The PhD program will help students develop expertise in conducting original research from both quantitative and qualitative approaches.

Knowledge and skills promoted

MFT foundations
Students study the work of the original thinkers in marital and family therapy as well as the most recent developments in the field such as social constructionism, narrative and solution-oriented therapies, and reflecting teams. They will develop a critical understanding of the theoretical and philosophical foundations of MFT, critically examine the interrelationships between socio-historical factors, family structures and relationships and clinical approaches, be conversant with the current issues in the field, and contribute to the discourse regarding them.

Personal development
The program encourages students to develop a more clear understanding of themselves and to reflexively consider the impact of their personal values, social positions, and contexts on their clinical and scholarly practices. Students are supported in the development of their strengths as they create an epistemological frameworks and ethical consciousness to guide their work.

Practice & supervisory skills
Students will apply a critical understanding of theory to the practice of marital and family therapy at the family, community, and societal levels, drawing on the core modalities of the field. They will develop sophistication in their personal clinical skills, supervisory skills, and skills for active multi-systemic involvement.

Research skills
Students will develop research skills and a critical understanding of the process of research related to families and marital and family therapy. This includes the ability to apply research findings to clinical practice and to utilize findings in creative ways for the benefit of the general population. PhD students will develop expertise in both qualitative and quantitative research methods, leading to publication in scholarly journals and presentations at professional conferences. DMFT students will focus more on research methods pertaining to program evaluation than on doing original research.

Core ideas guiding the program

Relational systems: People are best understood within the cultural, spiritual, and relational systems in which they are embedded. Change therefore occurs in context of family, community, and interpersonal relationships. This program focuses on both the structured relational patterns of communication and interaction and on the systems of meaning that define and shape these patterns.

Wholeness: The program encourages wholeness by attending to the physical, mental, social, and spiritual dimensions of human experience. These dimensions reciprocally interact with each other at every level.

Social forces: The program is guided by a belief that social contexts and processes influence meanings, values, and people?s understandings of self, family, and others. Research focusing on social forces relevant to the distinctive multicultural mix of families in the southern California region, collaboration among education, family, work, and legal systems, the interrelationship between faith and family relationships throughout the world, and the effects of the changing health-care system and medical technology are particularly emphasized.

Healing power of relationships: As people become more connected to each other and their communities, the potential for growth and healing are enhanced and the opportunity for making positive contributions maximized. Students are encouraged to develop their therapeutic relationship and community involvement skills such that they can co-create an environment of safety, respect, compassion, openness, and community participation.

Diversity: Congruent with an appreciation of the importance of social forces is an interest in and respect for the diverse experiences and perceptions of human beings. Different social contexts, such as race, ethnicity, religion, gender, and socioeconomic status, result in a wide variety of meanings and behavior patterns in marriages, families, and intimate relationships. The program seeks to create a diverse mix of students and faculty and to challenge all who are involved to learn from the richness of multiple perspectives.

Empirical process: The program encourages clinical work and theory development grounded in an empirical understanding of human experience. Students are offered the opportunity to develop their capacities to utilize inductive and deductive reasoning as well as objectivity, subjectivity, and inter-subjectivity in research and therapy.

Education and prevention: Connections at family, school, and community levels are important components of resilience. The program emphasizes helping individuals and families access their relational competencies as an important part of prevention, as well as the resolution of their current difficulties.

Spirituality: This program sees spirituality as central to wholeness and healing. Students are encouraged to integrate their practices of faith with their professional work. The program places strong emphasis on active demonstration of moral and ethical principles as exemplified by, but not limited to, Judeo-Christian teachings.

Worldwide focus: The mission of the program reaches beyond the local and national communities to the international communities. This includes collaboration with people from other nations and cultures to promote mutual understanding, resolve problems, and strengthen families.

Educational objectives

1) Students will develop professional identities as doctoral-level marital and family therapists.
2) Students will contribute to the ongoing development and evaluation of the theoretical and philosophical foundations of the field of marital and family therapy.
3) Students will critique and evaluate current issues in human development and family science with special emphasis on their relevance to the practice of marital and family therapy.
4) Students will demonstrate an ethical consciousness that guides their practice and contributions to the field of marital and family therapy.
5) Students will develop sophistication in the clinical practice of marital and family therapy.
6) Students will complete, or demonstrate substantial progress toward completion, the requirements for Approved Supervisory Status in the AAMFT.
7) Students will contribute to the body of knowledge that supports the field of marital and family therapy.

• PhD students will complete a dissertation in which they conduct original research in the field of marital and family therapy and interpret and communicate the findings through scholarly writing and presentations.
• DMFT students will complete a project involving program evaluation in the field of marital and family therapy and communicate the findings through professional writing and presentations.

Educational objectives (detailed)

Introduction, concentrations, and curriculum
Program philosophy and goals
Program requirements


Department of Counseling & Family Sciences Homepage

Educational objectives (detailed)

1. Students will develop professional identities as doctoral-level Marital and Family Therapists. They will:

• Demonstrate sophistication in systemic/relational perspectives and practices.
• Be conversant with the current issues in the field of marital and family therapy and engaged in the debate about them
• Contribute to development of the profession of marital and family therapy
• Become leaders in creating a nexus between marital and family therapy and other professions.

2. Students will contribute to the ongoing development and evaluation of the theoretical and philosophical foundations of the field of marital and family therapy. They will:

• Demonstrate competence in examining issues/cases through a variety of systemic/relational lenses.
• Address systemic connections beyond the clinic in both formal and informal systems.
• Utilize a global framework that encompasses the multicultural and international nature of the profession.
• Articulate a personal epistemology that guides research, theory, and practice.
• Demonstrate the capacity to link constructs and create theory.
• Communicate their ideas in professional forums, such as journals, presentations, and other venues for information exchange.
• Participate in and influence the professional discourse in marital and family therapy.

3. Students will critique and evaluate current issues in human development and family science with special emphasis on their relevance to the practice of marital and family therapy. They will:

• Examine family and individual development within context of the wider socio-cultural, historical, political, spiritual, and community contexts.
• Develop a framework to critically appraise perspectives and research on specific issues regarding human development and families.
• Integrate a positive, developmental perspective into a systemic understanding of human problems that considers multiple levels of influence.
• Encourage individuals, families, and other professionals to consider the developmental and contextual aspects of their clinical issues.

4. Students will demonstrate an ethical consciousness that guides their practice and contributions to the field of marital and family therapy. They will:

• Self-reflexively examine the impact of their personal values, social positions, and contexts on their clinical and scholarly practices and the consequences of these for clients and the larger society.
• Articulate a clear framework and process from which they grapple with and evaluate ethical issues, make decisions, and consciously integrate them into practice.
• Model high levels of ethical practice in all aspects of professional work, including research, supervision, administration, and teaching, as well as clinical practice and community involvement.
• Contribute to the evolving discussion that that guides and defines ethical practice within the field.

5. Students will develop sophistication in the clinical practice of marital and family therapy. They will:

• Have acquired during their doctoral studies, or prior to, a minimum of 1000 hours of supervised clinical practice in marital and family therapy.
• Demonstrate expertise beyond the basic level in the clinical practice of marital and family therapy
• Demonstrate clinical language and practices that enable them to work with diverse populations within a multidisciplinary context.
• Practice from well-articulated theoretical and ethical perspectives.
• Show a connection between research, theory, and practice and contribute to bridging that gap.
• Reflect on what happens in clinical practice in order identify clinical issues for further study and to test knowledge through practice as well as more formal methods of inquiry.
• Contribute to the ongoing development of standards of practice within marital and family therapy.

6. Students will complete, or demonstrate substantial progress toward completion, the requirements for Approved Supervisory Status in the AAMFT. They will:

• Demonstrate knowledge of the supervisory models and issues in the supervision literature in marital and family therapy
• Articulate a personal philosophy of supervision consistent with systemic/relational practice.
• Identify supervisory issues requiring further study in the practice of marital and family therapy.
• Develop skills and experience in MFT supervision. 

7. Students will contribute to the body of knowledge that supports the field of marital and family therapy. They will:

• Demonstrate comprehensive knowledge and skills regarding qualitative and quantitative research methodologies, statistics, and computer analysis.
• Be conversant with current "state of the art" findings, methods, and issues specific to marital and family therapy research.
• Critique, interpret, synthesize, and integrate research findings in order to develop and/or test theory, suggest implications for practice, and identify areas for further study.
• PhD students will complete a dissertation in which they conduct original research in the field of marital and family therapy and interpret and communicate the findings through scholarly writing and presentations.
• DMFT students will complete a project involving program evaluation in the field of marital and family therapy and communicate the findings through professional writing and presentations.