Family therapy plays a significant role in the therapy of mental disorders in children and adolescents, hence the youngest members of the family are the most vulnerable ones in their psychological and physical functioning.
Thus, the unexpressed and often unconscious internal conflicts of adult family members, can manifest in problematic behaviour or feelings of younger members.
Family therapy aims at awareness and expression of the difficulties of individual members and understanding of the interaction at the family level. The symptom can then be transferred from the child back to the area of family relationships, with which family therapy can continually work.
It is commonly recommended in child and adolescent psychiatry, basic indications are conduct disorders, eating disorders and a broad area of preschool psychiatric problems.