ABSTRACT
The technique described in this paper involves using resistant family members as "consultants" when only one family member comes in as the willing client. The idea of working with one individual for a family problem is not new. Brief family therapists have argued that the number of people seen is not an issue, and that work with the most motivated person in the system is useful (de Shazer & Berg, 1985; Fisch, Weakland, & Segal, 1982). The idea of using the term "consultation" rather than therapy is not new, either. Boscolo, Cecchin, Hoffman, & Penn (1987) label their work with families as consultation rather than therapy, arguing that such a term describes their work more accurately. Furthermore, this term decreases resistance and changes expectations; consultation does not offer a cure, and client choice is implied. I use the term differently, however, reserving it for family members of clients who are important as sources of information and power but who do not choose to be clients themselves. In this article, this technique is demonstrated through case examples.
