ESSAY: Applying Theoretical Interventions for Clients Experiencing Life Transition and Developmental Issues

Fischoff, R., & Jaffe, S. (Producers), & Benton, R. (Director). (1979). Kramer vs. Kramer [Motion picture]. . United States: Columbia Pictures.

Identify the movie and the life transition and developmental issue present in the couple or family.
Conceptualize the couple’s or family’s problem through your chosen theoretical orientation.
Design a treatment plan including short- and long-term goals.
Explain two evidence-based interventions you would use to address these couple’s or family’s issues and how you would use them.

ANSWER

Movie

Kramer vs. Kramer is a movie based on the themes of life transition and developmental issues. The two main characters featured in the movie are Ted and Joanna, who go through transforming life events which eventually lead them to rethink and re-examine their life choices (Lewis, 2017). Joanna makes a drastic choice to leave her husband and son, intending to find herself since she feels withdrawn and unfulfilled with her current state of life. Ted on the other, hand, goes through his transformation once his wife leaves (Creighton, 2019). As he tries to juggle his working life and being a single parent, he can develop a deeper relationship and bind with his son, which he had not cultivated as much before the separation with his wife.

Theoretical Orientation

My chosen theoretical orientation is the cognitive-behavioral approach, which focuses on analyzing why people in a relationship behave as they do as well as their motivations. It also assists the individuals in solving whatever problems that may have come about as a result of their thinking processes Griffiths & Averbeck, 2016). Taking this approach into account, the couple featured in Kramer Vs Kramer has an ineffective communication issue, which in turn translates into separation. Therefore, leading to the loss of the maternal influence in the child’s life. The lack of effective communication between the couple causes them to feel delineated from each other, which makes Joanna feel as though she does not belong in her own family, despite her love for them. Additionally, Ted is not able to communicate the stressful time he is experiencing after his wife leaves him, hence leading him to lose his job as he tries to soldier on despite his situation.

Treatment Plan

The treatment plan that would best suit the couple during their transition period is the use of the CBT approach. The couple should attend two sessions a week together since the issue between them is the lack of communication fueled by their attitudes towards each other (Griffiths & Averbeck, 2016). The therapy session should help them deal with their emotions as well as train their minds to think the best of each other despite the tension and distress they may be facing at the time. Also, the change in their beliefs and attitudes would assist them in providing a stable home environment for the child amidst the different developmental challenges he may be facing after being left by his mother and the custody battle ensuing between his parents.

Interventions

One kind of intervention that would help the couple is the use of the mimic techniques, where each acts like the other. Performing this particular intervention gives each of the spouses an idea as to what they should change to enhance the relationship. The second intervention is the use of journals, where everyone in the family gets to write down their thoughts, feeling, and emotions throughout the week (Jeffries et al., 2016). After this, they get to express these emotions to each other with the intervention of the therapist. The expression of these thoughts allows them to cultivate the habit of speaking their thoughts honestly and openly with each other. Therefore, also giving the child the confidence that he can communicate his feelings despite the ensuing turmoil his childhood solace is currently experiencing….