ABSTRACT
This part introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters. The part provides a series of illustrations of some of the different ways in which formulation can be approached. It offers as statements about the position of a particular discipline on the formulation debate, but, rather, examples of what it means to engage with the task of formulation. The part explores the value of a narrative approach to formulation for coaching practice. It explores formulation within the context of work with children and young people at risk of exclusion. The part highlights some of the particular dilemmas facing practitioners in this field, especially the issue of multiple participants and multiple and sometimes hidden agendas. It considers the challenge to formulation posed by existential therapy, which questions what it regards as an over-reliance on the technical at the expense of the relational.
