Couple and Family Therapy

Purpose:The number of individuals from diverse backgrounds is increasing in U.S., and one form of diversity that is becoming more prevalent is related to relational orientation. The dominant relational orientation in U.S. is monogamous and mono-partnered, yet researchers have reported approximately 4-5% of people identify as consensually non-monogamous (e.g., swingers, polyamorous, etc.) (Conley, Moors, Matsick, & Ziegler, 2012).Issues:As a minoritized population, these people often face struggles with legal contracting, marital recognition, immigration acceptance, support for child custody, spousal evidentiary protection, and adequate access to medical, legal and therapeutic services. Yet, may be hesitant to seek help because of realistic fears of experiencing these same forms of monogamism inside the therapy room (Altman & Ginat, 1996). In order to remain ethical and viable, clinicians need be prepared to work with these clients (Blumer, Haym, Zimmerman, & Prouty, 2013). However, many practitioners are unfamiliar with the needs of non-monogamous-identifying clients, and family systems (Zimmerman, 2012). Additionally, only sparse literature and rare training opportunities exist to inform clinicians.Overview of Session Activities:To meet these gaps, the presenters will guide participants in exploring monogamism in dominant mainstream culture, as well as harmful effects this can have on relational orientation minorities (Blumer, 2014). This will be through examination and discussion of current scholarly literature, as well as through recent research demonstrating ways to increase one’s knowledge and skills in addressing and decreasing monogamism in clinical practice (Blumer, Prouty, VandenBosch, & Haym, in preparation). Next, presenters will share suggested clinical approaches, based on literature and clinical experience, for use with relational orientation minorities and related configurations (Barker & Iantaffi, 2014). Both parts of the learning session will include experiential activities— aimed at bolstering one’s clinical practices when working with consensually open non-monogamous relationships and family systems.