Introduction
The Simpsons show is one of the most watched programs on TV for almost twenty years. The people have enjoyed the family dynamic in the show and how it is portrayed. The Simpsons seem to be different from all the comedic shows on the television. When looking at the kind of family that the Simpsons has, is that it is a typical nuclear family that most people have in the world. This is the reason why most people are able to relate to the characters. The siblings from the show seem to be of that of a normal typical family where the first-born and the last-born seem to be getting more attention from the parents. The middle child is usually forgotten in that they start fending for themselves. The father is a drunk who seems not to care much about the children and the mother is a typical housewife. Marge seems to be the rock of the family who finds ways to clear any friction that is in the family. In looking at the family, it is very clear that they have their share of psychological problems. The problems came from the father who is a drunk and abuses his son Bart. The middle child Lisa, the parents usually do not concentrate on her thus has made her depend on herself. The mother sometimes feels as though her husband does not care about her or the family. The cognitive behavioral theory and the solution-focused theory can be used as treatment in order to help with the psychological issues that the family might have with them. The cognitive behavioral therapy is a psychotherapeutic approach that is used to treat people of the dysfunctional emotions and behaviors. Some of the conditions that are well known to be treated by this treatment are anxiety, psychotic disorders and mood (Philip & Kendall, 1993).
The Simpsons family
According to the Simpsons family dynamic, there is a father, a mother and three children. The children are one boy and two girls. The middle child Lisa seems to be independent in that there was a time in the show where when she was younger she had to look after herself by removing her own diaper. The brother Bart seems to be given more attention and also likes it. Bart is also some sort of a bully and very mean to others. This could be because of the abusive relationship he has with the father. He also craves being the popular kid in that whenever somebody who is more "cooler" than he is comes along, he finds ways for them to be kicked out of school or lose their popularity. The last born named Maggie is the baby of the family who is always with her mother. In looking at the show one can clearly see that if Bart is not getting the attention it is Maggie.
In looking at the sexual orientation, it is very clear that the family is straight. There is a mother and a father. The eldest child Bart has been shown to have a number of crushes on some of the female characters assumed to be his age. Lisa has had relationships with the school bully who is male.
The father seems to be abusive especially to Bart his son. He usually chokes Bart until he cannot breathe properly. There was an episode where the family went to therapy and Homer was able to see that what he was doing was not right. When he stopped choking Bart, his son became worse, kept disturbing the school, and peoples especially his father. He knew there was nothing that his father would do. This caused them to look for the psychologist who caused Homer to stop abusing his son in order to turn him back in order to teach his son manners. The truth is that there are other ways other than choking or abuse that would change a child behavior. Homer is also a drunk who at times seems not to care about his work.
When Marge lost her memories after an accident, of all the people the one person she did not remember was her husband. If fact she was disgusted, by the way Homer was behaving towards her children. She even left him and later on after Homer showed her that, they loved each other and that is when they were able to get back together. This family is showing that it has many shortcomings but at the end of the day, they are still a family. By using, the cognitive-behavioral theory and the solution-focused theory a counselor will be able to strengthen the family even more by focusing at their problems and solving it.
Key concepts of cognitive behavioral theory and the solution focused therapy
The cognitive behavioral theory has the combination of cognitive and behavior. The cognitive component in the theory refers to as the ways in which people think and how they create meaning about a particular situation, events occurring in a person’s life, symptoms and the beliefs that they have over themselves and others. The cognitive intervention style uses questioning in order for the psychologist to be able to help the clients find alternative ideas or viewpoint of a particular problem. This kind of a situation is stated to be the guided discovery.
The behavioral component in the theory refers to the way the people respond to a distressful situation in their life. It is a fact that when unhelpful behavior continues the person’s distressful feelings will continue to worsen. This is the reason why the psychologist tries their level best to help the clients change their negative behaviors into something positive. The cognitive behavioral therapy has been stated to be one of the most effective ways of treating people with depression and anxiety disorders (Butler, 2008).
The solution-focused therapy is usually focusing on the problems solutions that an individual might have in their life rather than the problem solving. During the therapeutic procedure, it should concentrate on the patient’s future and not the past problems. The solution in the theory the therapist focuses on the different views that will help the patient overcome their problems on focus on their future. Focus in the theory is the concentration made on the solutions that will help the patients (Berg, 1994).
Treatment goals for cognitive behavioral theory
There are a number of goals set in order to help the Simpson family using the cognitive behavioral therapy. The therapist using the cognitive behavioral therapy should ensure that it is educative in that the patient and the family are taught on a number of skills, which would be useful in helping the patients overcome their problems. One of the main goals of the cognitive behavioral therapy is that it ensures that there is not remission and that the condition does not reappear. The sessions ensure that the individuals are able to face their real life problems. In the case of the Simpsons family, they will be able to see and overcome some of the problems they might have in their lives (Philip & Kendall, 1993).
Treatment goals for the problem solution theory
There are many goals that have been put in place for the solution-focused theory. One of the main goals for the therapist is to ensure that the clients are able to find new ideas or solutions that will help them move forward from their past behaviors. The therapist should also ensure that the clients do not dwell on the past events that brought about distress in their lives. The patients are supposed to develop goals, which will help them in constructing the next chapter of their lives. These goals can be achieved with the help of the counselor (Berg, 1994).
Intervention strategies for cognitive behavioral therapy
The therapist should be able to recognize irrational thoughts from the clients. This will enable them to use different approaches, which would be the best for the clients to be treated. When the therapist is able to do this then the client will be able to have a full recovery with minimal relapse (Butler, 2008).
It is very important that the therapist should establish an accurate empathy towards the client. When the therapist shows empathy towards the client the client will feel that the therapist understands their problems. The show of empathy will encourage the client to communicate effectively with the therapist thus, they will be able to get help and straighten their lives and relationships.
The therapist should concentrate on the client’s assumptions about the reasons that make them have distressful feelings and emotions. This will enable the therapist to come up with better ways of helping the patients to come up with positive activities that will make them concentrate on other things (Philip & Kendall, 1993).
Intervention strategies for solution focused therapy
The therapist should look in whether the client has solved any previous problems. The client’s problems might have come back but for the therapist it should be a plus if the client was able to find new ideas in order to solve a particular problem.
The client should complement the client at any progress they are able to make. Compliments are very essential for the clients because it helps the individuals to understand that what they are doing is helpful to them. It also boosts their morale in the activity.
The therapist should formulate specific solution-focused goals that might have a great impact on the treatment of the client. These goals are supposed to be small and not larger goals. The therapist should encourage the client to formulate their own goals this is a way of solution solving problems (Berg, 1994).
The therapist should concentrate on questions about the present and the future life of the client. This will ensure the client will not dwell on the events that caused them to have distress in their lives. This will give them a sense of how they want their life to go.
Discussion
The best method of treatment for the Simpson family is the solution-focused theory. This is because in the solution focused the family will be taught on the new solutions that will help in building their future. The family has a number of problems such as abusive relationship between the father and the son. The solution will be found because the abusive relationship has caused the son to be abusive to others. The therapist will come up with a better solution that will help build in the father son relationship. The parents have sort off neglected their second child Lisa who has learned to be dependent. The family will find solutions, which would make Lisa be a normal child. The sibling relationship is also not good thus; the therapist has to come up with goals oriented solutions that will make the children be united.
In conclusion, the Simpson family has shown that they can be a typical family that has normal problems. There are some issues that the family has that are causing sibling rivalry, father and son problems and sometimes marital problems. The cognitive behavioral theory and the solution-focused theory can be used as treatment for the family. These two treatments can be used to cause the family to understand the roots of the problem and come up with better solutions of the problems. The best treatment for the family is the solution-focused therapy.
Reference
Berg, I. K. (1994). Family-based services: A solution-focused approach. New York: Norton.
Butler, G. (2008). Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Anxiety Disorders. New York: The Guilford Press.
Keslowitz, S. (2003). The Simpsons And Society: An Analysis Of Our Favorite Family And Its Influence In Contemporary Society. Hats Off Books.
Philip C. & Kendall, L. B. (1993). Cognitive-behavioral Therapy for Impulsive Children. New York: Guilford Press.
