Promoting the Profession of MFC/T, Essay Example

The International Association of Marriage and Family Counselors (IAMFC) is committed to promoting excellent counseling for couples and families (IAMFC, 2013, Excellence section). As Hendricks, Bradley, Southern, Oliver, and Birdsall (2011) explain, this includes practice, training, and research: the IAMFC is devoted to advancing all of these in order to help families and couples (p. 217). A big part of this is specializations, of which there are many represented by the IAMFC: “premarital counseling, couple counseling, family counseling, sex counseling, intergenerational counseling, separation and divorce counseling, relocation counseling, custody evaluation, and parenting training” (p. 217). The IAMFC advances leadership in all of these areas, notably through its Family Journal, which has regular sections devoted to many of these specialties (IAMFC, 2013, Publications section). Contributors to the journal have also addressed such specific topics as ethical considerations in the context of family counseling and referral issues for LGBT clients (Janson, 2002).

The American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT) has the mission of facilitating and promoting research, the development of theory, and education in the fields of marriage and family therapy (AAMFT, n.d., About AAMFT section). The organization plays a leading role in making sure that there are competent and well-trained practitioners in order to provide marriage and family therapy (About AAMFT section). The AAMFT Research and Education Foundation is a significant way in which the organization exercises leadership toward this end: the AAMFT Research and Education Foundation promotes research, education, and special projects to advance the causes of “marriage and family therapy, family policy and family science” (AAMFT Research and Education Foundation section). The AAMFT is also promoting a DSM-5 Live Training Series, which will help professionals to diagnose substance and somatic disorders, ranging from substance abuse to sexual dysfunctions and more (DSM-5 section).

References

AAMFT. (n.d.). About AAMFT. AAMFT. Retrieved from http://www.aamft.org/imis15/content/about_aamft/AAMFT.aspx

—. (n.d.). The AAMFT Research and Education Foundation. AAMFT. Retrieved from: http://www.aamft.org/imis15/Content/About_AAMFT/Foundation.aspx

—. (n.d.). DSM-5 live training series. AAMFT. Retrieved from http://www.aamft.org/iMIS15/AAMFT/

Hendricks, B., Bradley, L. J., Southern, S., Oliver, M., & Birdsall, B. (2011). Ethical code for the International Association of Marriage and Family Counselors. The Family Journal, 19(2), pp. 217-224. DOI: 10.1177/1066480711400814

IAMFC. (2013). Excellence in couples and family counseling. IAMFC. Retrieved from http://www.iamfconline.org/

—. (2013). Publications. IAMFC. Retrieved from: http://www.iamfconline.org/public/department26.cfm

Janson, G. R. (2002). Family counseling and referral with gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered client: Ethical considerations. The Family Journal, 10(3), pp. 328-333. DOI: 10.1177/10680702010003010