| Course | ADC 660 Addiction and Families |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 7 |
| Paper type | Family therapy comparison with plan |
| Length | About 1,029 words, 6 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Aspen University |
| Program | Psychology and Addiction Studies |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for ADC 660 Module 7
When the Teenager Is the One Using: Intensive Family Therapy for Tyler
Student Name
Psychology and Addiction Studies Program, Aspen University
ADC 660: Addiction and Families
Instructor Name
Month Day, Year
When the Teenager Is the One Using: Intensive Family Therapy for Tyler
Six months after Glen began treatment, the Omaha program heard from Lisa again. Tyler, now fifteen and a half, had moved from weekend drinking to smoking cannabis most days. He had been suspended for having it at school and was failing English and algebra. Glen, sober and still in couple therapy with Lisa, felt responsible and did not know whether he had any right to set limits. Tyler, his parents and the program are composites written for teaching. This paper considers the intensive family therapy that could help.
Why Treat the Family
Adolescent substance use is closely tied to family life: how well parents monitor, how clearly they set limits, how warmly they connect with their child and how conflict is handled. Peers who use matter too, and parents influence which peers a teenager spends time with. Rowe (2012) reviewed a decade of research and concluded that family-based treatments are among the best-supported approaches for adolescent drug abuse, because they work on these processes directly rather than treating the teenager alone.
Multidimensional Family Therapy
Multidimensional family therapy, known as MDFT, works in four domains: the adolescent, the parents, the family's interactions and the systems outside the family, such as school and juvenile justice. Therapists meet the teenager alone to build a relationship and work on motivation and skills, meet parents alone to strengthen their parenting and attend to their own stresses and hold joint sessions to repair relationships and practice new ways of talking. They also contact school staff and others directly. Liddle et al. (2009) randomly assigned young adolescents referred for substance use to MDFT or to a peer group treatment. Over twelve months, MDFT produced greater reductions in substance use and related problems, and gains in family functioning, with differences that held at follow-up.
Brief Strategic Family Therapy
Brief strategic family therapy, or BSFT, focuses on repetitive patterns of family interaction that maintain a teenager's problem behavior, such as a parent who threatens consequences but never follows through, or parents who undermine each other. The therapist joins the family, observes how they interact and works to restructure those patterns, typically over twelve to sixteen sessions. Robbins et al. (2011) tested BSFT against usual care in eight community agencies with a large sample of adolescents. BSFT was more effective at engaging and keeping families in treatment and improved parent-reported family functioning, but it did not produce a clear overall advantage on adolescents' drug use.
| Feature | MDFT | BSFT |
|---|---|---|
| Focus | Teen, parents, family and outside systems | Family interaction patterns |
| Typical length | Several months, often one to three contacts a week | About twelve to sixteen sessions |
| Key trial | Liddle et al. (2009): greater reductions in use than group treatment | Robbins et al. (2011): better engagement and family functioning; no clear edge on drug use |
| Fit for the Hartleys | Suits school problems and a parent with limits | Suits clear interaction patterns, less help with school |
Choosing for This Family
Tyler's problems ran across several systems: home, school and possibly the courts if his use led to another incident. Glen's early recovery limited how much pressure he could take on. MDFT's work with parents alone, its contact with school and its trial evidence with young teenagers made it the better fit. The counselor referred the family to an MDFT-trained therapist, with sessions at home and at the clinic.
A Three-Phase Plan
In the first phase, about six weeks, the therapist builds a working relationship with Tyler, focused on what he wants, such as getting off suspension and back on the soccer team. She meets Glen and Lisa to agree on limits they can both hold, with attention to Glen's recovery and his guilt. She also meets the school's counselor about a return plan. In the second phase, about eight weeks, joint sessions help the family talk about Glen's drinking, which Tyler has never discussed with him, and practice negotiating curfews and consequences without shouting. Tyler works on refusing offers and on finding friends outside the group he smokes with. In the third phase, about six weeks, sessions thin out as the family takes over, and the plan addresses high-risk times such as summer and Glen's possible relapse.
Glen's Place in the Work
Glen's question, whether he had any right to set limits after his own drinking, came up early. The therapist helped him see that his recovery gave him something to offer Tyler: an honest account of how use had cost him and how he was rebuilding. Glen told Tyler in a joint session that he was sorry for the years he had been drinking. Rowe (2012) noted that effective family approaches strengthen relationships rather than assign blame; the apology began that work from Glen's side.
Measuring Progress
Progress will be judged with weekly urine screens for the first phase and monthly afterward, school attendance and grades from the school counselor, Tyler's own report of use and a family functioning questionnaire completed by each family member at the start, at three months and at the end. If use has not fallen by the end of the second phase, the team will consider adding more intensive services, such as an adolescent intensive outpatient program.
Emma During Tyler's Treatment
Intensive work with one child can leave a sibling on the edge of the family's attention. Emma, now eleven, had watched her brother's suspension and her parents' worry and had begun asking whether Tyler would "end up like Dad used to be." The therapist invited her to one joint session in the second phase, so that she could hear the family's plan and ask her questions, and Lisa kept Emma's evening routine protected on therapy nights. Her teacher continued the brief check-ins begun earlier in the course.
Conclusion
Rowe's review shows why adolescent substance use is treated through the family. Liddle and colleagues found MDFT reduced young teenagers' substance use more than group treatment, and Robbins and colleagues found BSFT improved engagement and family functioning in community settings without a clear edge on use. For Tyler, a three-phase MDFT plan works across his home, his school and his relationship with a father in recovery.
References
Liddle, H. A., Rowe, C. L., Dakof, G. A., Henderson, C. E., & Greenbaum, P. E. (2009). Multidimensional family therapy for young adolescent substance abuse: Twelve-month outcomes of a randomized controlled trial. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 77(1), 12-25. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0014160
Robbins, M. S., Feaster, D. J., Horigian, V. E., Rohrbaugh, M., Shoham, V., Bachrach, K., Miller, M., Burlew, K. A., Hodgkins, C., Carrion, I., Vandermark, N., Schindler, E., Werstlein, R., & Szapocznik, J. (2011). Brief strategic family therapy versus treatment as usual: Results of a multisite randomized trial for substance using adolescents. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 79(6), 713-727. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0025477
Rowe, C. L. (2012). Family therapy for drug abuse: Review and updates 2003-2010. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 38(1), 59-81. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1752-0606.2011.00280.x
What the ADC 660 Module 7 instructions ask for
Module 7 of ADC 660 generally asks for a paper on intensive family therapy, often for a young person's substance use. Use the Module 7 instructions in your Aspen course to confirm the focus; this family is invented. Explain why an adolescent's use is treated through the family, drawing on what is known about parenting, monitoring and peers. Compare at least two family therapy models, describing what a therapist actually does in each. Report trial evidence accurately, including mixed or null findings. Plan treatment in phases for one family, naming who attends and what changes are targeted. Say how you would measure progress. Format references in APA 7, and keep the parents' own needs in view, since a parent in early recovery has limits of their own.
How this ADC 660 Module 7 example is built
Tyler, the composite fifteen-year-old, now smokes cannabis daily, has been suspended and is failing two classes; his father, Glen, is six months into recovery. A randomized trial by Liddle and colleagues finds multidimensional family therapy ahead of group treatment for young adolescents over twelve months. A multisite trial by Robbins and colleagues tests brief strategic family therapy in community agencies and reports better engagement and parent-reported family functioning but no clear overall advantage on drug use. Rowe's review summarizes the field. A four-row table compares the models, and a three-phase plan covers Tyler, his parents, the family together and his school. Progress measures are set for each phase.
ADC 660 Module 7 rubric: what earns full marks
Strong family therapy papers justify treating the whole family, describe each model accurately and report the evidence honestly. This example explains why parenting and monitoring are targets, then describes what each model asks of a therapist. It reports the community trial's mixed results rather than treating every family therapy as proven. The plan works across the systems in Tyler's life, including school, and builds in his parents' limits, especially his father's early recovery. Progress measures are specific: urine screens, school attendance and a family functioning scale, reviewed at set points. The model choice is argued from the family's circumstances rather than from preference, and the paper keeps Emma in view even though she is not the focus.
Common ADC 660 Module 7 mistakes, and how to avoid them
Family therapy papers sometimes treat the family as the cause of an adolescent's use, which alienates parents. Frame the family as the most powerful resource for change. Describe model components concretely: individual sessions with the teen, sessions with parents and joint sessions, plus contact with school or courts where needed. Report evidence with care; one large community trial found that a well-supported model improved engagement more than drug use. Name who attends and how often. Consider the parents' situation honestly, including a parent's own recovery. If you compare models, end by saying which you would choose for this family and why. Name the measures and dates you will use to decide whether therapy is working.
Write yours, or have the desk draft it
This paper is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Aspen University document. Read it for the moves, then write your own to the instructions in your classroom. If you want one built to your exact prompt and rubric, the first custom sample is free and arrives in 24 to 48 hours.
More ADC 660 and Psychology and Addiction Studies sample papers
- ADC 660 Module 1: Addiction in the Family Context
- ADC 660 Module 2: Family Systems and Roles
- ADC 660 Module 3: Children of Parents With Addictions
- ADC 660 Module 4: Engaging Families in Treatment
- ADC 660 Module 5: Brief Family Interventions
- ADC 660 Module 6: Behavioral Couple Therapy
- ADC 660 Module 8: A Tiered Family Treatment Plan
- ADC 605 Module 6: Environmental Strategies and Policy
- PAC 115 Module 6: Terminology in Addiction Studies
- PAC 405 Module 6: Child-Centered Therapy
- PAC 415 Module 3: Beneficence and Client Goals
ADC 660 Module 7 questions, answered
What does ADC 660 Module 7 usually ask for?
Aspen's ADC 660 reaches intensive family therapy in this module, so a paper comparing family models for a young person's substance use with a treatment plan is typical. Confirm the details in your Module 7 prompt.
What is multidimensional family therapy?
A family-based treatment for adolescent substance use that works with the teen, the parents, the family together and outside systems such as school and juvenile justice.
Does family therapy work for teenagers who use drugs?
Liddle and colleagues found multidimensional family therapy reduced young teens' use more than group treatment; a community trial of brief strategic family therapy improved engagement but not drug use overall.
Where can I find a free ADC 660 Module 7 sample paper?
This page holds the full paper: why adolescent use is treated through the family, two models and their trials compared and a three-phase plan for one family.
What is brief strategic family therapy?
A family therapy that identifies repetitive family interaction patterns linked to a teenager's problem behavior and works to change them, typically over about twelve to sixteen sessions.