Incestuous Families: An Ecological Approach to Understanding and Treatment

This text argues that incestuous behaviour can only be fully understood with reference to its "ecology."

The authors' approach to intervention and treatment focuses on creatively rebalancing the intrapsychic dynamics of individual family members, as well as the family's connections with its families of origin and with the larger community.

The term "ecological" captures the complexity of working with incestuous families. The functioning of these families can be fully understood only with reference to the relationships of family members to each other, to their families of origin, and to their social environment. Intrafamilial sexual abuse reflects problems of gender, family structure, interpersonal processes, and cultural influences, as well as personality distortions arising from individual development. Therefore, the ecological approach to treatment works to creatively rebalance the relationships of family members to each other and of the family to the larger community, while simultaneously restructuring certain aspects of individual members' sexuality and personality. These concepts and principles form the basis of a comprehensive theoretical model that is applied throughout the book in specific techniques and detailed case illustrations. The authors compellingly demonstrate that a major goal of therapists dealing with incest should be to assist in the repair of fractured families as well as the healing of individuals as family members. Fulfilling this goal requires sensitivity, compassion, and flexibility on the part of the therapist, and a willingness to envision positive possibilities for all members of the family.