Family Based Services: A Solution-Based Approach (Norton Professional Books)

This book is for those who "work in the trenches" of child welfare and family services. Caseworkers often go into the worst situations and have insufficient time to make effective interventions. By applying the principles of brief, solution-focused therapy to family-based services, social service workers can deliver treatment that is cost-effective, humane, and empowering to families. For professionals unfamiliar with the theory and concepts of brief therapy, Berg describes the process in a step-by-step fashion. She gives clear guidelines on what to cover in assessment interviews, how to talk to clients so they will listen to you and feel heard by you, how to conduct yourself in a client's home, what to do about dangerous situations, and how a solution-focused approach can be adapted to a variety of service programs. Case examples illustrate different techniques, and sample assessment forms are included, which can be adapted to different agency needs. Workers can engage clients in productive problem solving by concentrating on what clients do right, rather than what they do wrong. With this book in hand, workers have a useful tool for empowering families.

Insoo Kim Berg, MSW, codeveloped Solution-Focused Brief Therapy and is Director of the Brief Family Therapy Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Her most recent books are Children’s Solution Work (with Therese Steiner) and Interviewing for Solutions (with Peter de Jonge).