DEUSTO FAMILY PSYCH

Scope of study
The premise is that health and well-being should be studied in a broader relational context. And, according to Psychology and Family Psychotherapy, the family is the most relevant context in health promotion, prevention and recovery. Maladjusted family relationships can have a powerful negative impact, causing or encouraging various psychopathological manifestations. The situations that can generate these manifestations are diverse: intra-family conflict and violence, addictions, situations, infertility, immigration, lack of parental competences, etc.

Therefore, as stated by the American Psychological Association (APA) regarding Family Psychologists, this research team would be concerned with alarming phenomena such as destructive inter-parental and intra-family conflict (couple, parent-child conflict), or the increase in physical and mental health problems associated with relational patterns, but also with understanding the conditions that favour the well-being of family members and their evaluation in processes involving the allocation of child custody, guardianship, violence, and psychotherapeutic interventions. And all this, throughout the family life cycle, from prenatal periods to late adulthood.

Specific Goals:

1. Analyse risk and protective factors in adverse or complex family situations and the impact of these situations throughout life.
2. Develop and validate assessment tools.
3. Design, develop and evaluate evidence-based intervention programmes applicable to community and clinical contexts, and evaluate their efficacy, effectiveness and efficiency.
4. Disseminate research findings at congresses or in scientific journals, develop national or international meetings with professionals from other associations or institutions, generate knowledge networks, etc.

AREAS

1. Inter-parental and intra-family conflict. Adjustment and adaptation, Emotional regulation. Family security. Sibling relationships. Destructive conflict. Evidence-based interventions. Therapeutic Alliance.
2. Adoption. Communication on origins, health, attachment, child and youth welfare, emotional parenting, psychological well-being of adult children, etc. Family intervention.
3. Prenatal and postnatal attachment and bonding. Pregnancy, 0-6 years, bonding, mentalisation, attachment, parental competence, gender differences between parents, evidence-based intervention.
4. Family and health. Immigrant families, mindfulness, substance abuse, families at psychosocial risk, work-family balance, somatisation and family relationships, etc. It has two areas: 1) Relational patterns and family well-being; 2) Impact of relational patterns on adolescence.