Functional Family Therapy

Functional Family Therapy (FFT) is a family-based prevention and intervention program for high-risk youths ages 11 to 18 that has been applied successfully in a variety of multi-ethnic, multicultural contexts to treat a range of high-risk youths and their families. It integrates several elements (established clinical theory, empirically supported principles, and extensive clinical experience) into a clear and comprehensive clinical model. The FFT model allows for successful intervention in complex and multidimensional problems through clinical practice that is flexibly structured and culturally sensitive. FFT ranges from an average of 8 to 12 one-hour sessions for mild cases and incorporates up to 30 sessions of direct service for families in more difficult situations. Sessions are generally spread over a 3-month period and can be conducted in clinical settings as an outpatient therapy and as a home-based model.

The model includes specific phases: engagement/motivation, behavior change, and generalization. Engagement and motivation are achieved through decreasing the intense negativity often characteristic of high-risk families. The behavior change phase aims to reduce and eliminate the problem behaviors and accompanying family relational patterns through individualized behavior change interventions (skill training in family communication, parenting, problem-solving, and conflict management). The goal of the generalization phase is to increase the family's capacity to adequately use multisystemic community resources and to engage in relapse prevention.

The goal of this program is to provide positive family strengthening resources to youth at risk and in need.

Several evaluation studies using matched or randomly assigned control/comparison group designs have been conducted between 1973 and 2013. The findings show that when compared with standard juvenile probation services, residential treatment, and alternative therapeutic approaches, FFT is highly successful. The outcome findings of the research conducted during the past 30 years show that when compared with no treatment, other family therapy interventions, and traditional juvenile court services (e.g., probation), FFT can reduce adolescent re-arrests by up to 60 percent. Moreover, both randomized trials and comparison group studies show that FFT significantly reduces recidivism for a wide range of juvenile offense patterns. In addition, studies have found that FFT dramatically reduces the cost of treatment. A Washington State study, for example, shows the benefits of FFT, which included benefits to both crime victims and taxpayers, to be $36,241 per youth. FFT also significantly reduces potential new offending for siblings of treated adolescents.