Becoming Solution-Focused In Brief Therapy

289 Pages·1992·5.765 MB·English

by  John L. Walter, Jane E. Peller

BECOMING
SOLUTION-FOCUSED
IN BRIEF THERAPY
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BECOMING
SOLUTION-FOCUSED
IN BRIEF THERAPY
John L. Walter
Jane E. Peller
R Routledge
O
U
TL Taylor & Francis Group
E
DGNEW YORK AND LONDON
E

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Published in 1992 by Published in Great Britain by
Routledge Routledge
Taylor & Francis Group Taylor & Francis Group
270 Madison Avenue 2 Park Square
New York, NY 10016 Milton Park, Abingdon
Oxon OX14 4RN
© 1992 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC
Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis Group
Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper
28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19
International Standard Book Number-10: 0-87630-653-9 (Hardcover)
International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-87630-653-6 (Hardcover)
Library of Congress catalog number: 91-43491
No part of this book may be reprinted, reproduced, transmitted, or utilized in any form by any electronic,
mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying, microfilming, and
recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without written permission from the publishers.
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for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
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To the memory of John's mother, Afra Walter,
and to our parents, William Walter, Jonesy Wagner,
Bert Peller, Victor Wagner, and Suzanne Peller, who
in their own ways continually keep us optimistic
and on track.
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Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction xi
1. Becoming Solution-Focused 1
It Starts with a Question
2. Assumptions of a Solution-Focused Approach 10
3. A Positive Start 37
4. Weil-Defined Goals 51
5. Pathways of Constructing Solutions 63
6. The Hypothetical Solution Frame 76
7. The Exceptions Frame 91
8. Positive Feedback 106
9. What Do We Do Next? 140
"Every Session Is the First, Every Session Is the Last"
10. Enhancing "Agency" 159
Facilitating What Seems Out of Control as Within Control
11. The Interactional Matrix 168
12. "But I Want Them to Be Different" 188
When Someone Else Is Defined as the Problem
13. Cooperating 200
14. Putting It All Together 217
Case Examples
15. Voluntary or Involuntary 242
A Basic Distinction
16. The Involuntary Client 247
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viii Contents
17. It Ends with a Working Solution 255
A Final Word 259
References 260
Name Index 263
Subject Index 265
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Acknowledgments
A book is never written by the authors alone. It is always a team effort
and the authors just get to have their names on the cover. We want to
thank family, friends, trainees, clients, and workshop participants, all
of whom have contributed in their own unique ways.
We want to say a special thanks to Insoo Kim Berg and Steve de
Shazer. Through our association and friendship with each of them, we
have grown tremendously. We feel honored to be the spokespersons
for many of their contributions to the development of Brief Therapy
that they shared with us.
John wants to thank Insoo for first asking him, "Why do you want
to be a Brief Therapist? It could be a very upsetting change." Jane wants
to thank Steve for reminding her to be "simpleminded."
We also want to offer a special thank you to Eve Lipchik, who was
the first to suggest that we write a manual. Her support was gentle in
each reminder of "You can do it."
We want to thank our friends, Jill Freedman and Gene Combs, who
having struggled through the writing and publication of their own book,
were a constant source of encouragement and helpful hints.
John wants to thank Michael Banks. Through Michael's outsider's
curiosity and provoking questions, John sharpened and developed his
own thinking about what we do. Michael's enthusiasm for our project
was always there.
Jane wants to thank her chairperson at Northeastern Illinois Univer
sity, Wanda Bracy, for giving her the release time to work on the book.
She also wants to thank Wanda for enhancing Jane's confidence in being
able to take on any project by their mutual suffering through the self-
study of their department.
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