Lunch and Learn: Using Family Systems Theory to De-triangulate Mixed-Faith Couples
Chelsea Cheney, LMFT
Chelsea is a couples and family therapist passionate about finding more support for mixed-faith families. As a doctoral candidate at the University of Iowa, she focuses on faith changes in relationships and is currently studying the experiences of believing Mormon individuals who have a spouse disaffiliate from the church.
This presentation will utilize Family Systems theory as a guide for mental health providers for systemic diagnosis and interventions when a spouse disaffiliates from a previously shared faith in marriage, specifically through examining the concept of positive and negative uses of triangulation within the therapeutic and family systems.
Learning objectives:
- Participants will be able to diagnose problems developed in the couple system through identifying current trajectories and problematic issues of autonomy and adaptation.
- Participants will be able to map out steps to restructure the couple system by de-triangulating prior-shared beliefs and using provider positionality to reconstruct shared triangulation.
- Participants will identify possible provider countertransference that interferes with couple adaptation.