Ongoing Research

SHIFT study, University of Leeds

Self-Harm Intervention, Family Therapy (SHIFT) is a randomised controlled trial of family therapy vs. treatment as usual for young people seen after second or subsequent episodes of self-harm. The study is investigating whether a regime of family therapy is an effective intervention for young people who harm themselves. The trial aims to recruit 832 participants from centres in Yorkshire, Greater Manchester and London. Family therapy will be delivered by qualified family therapists using a modified version of the Leeds Family Therapy & Research Centre Systemic Family Therapy Manual (LFTRC Manual). The primary outcome is rate of repetition of self-harm leading to hospital attendance 18 months after randomisation. Secondary outcomes include rate of repetition at 12 months, cost-effectiveness, quality of life, and predictive / process measures.

SCORE project, University of Leeds, Maudlsey Hospital, Institute of Psychiatry, South London & Maudsley NHS Trust (SLAM)

SCORE is a self-report outcome measure designed to be sensitive to the kinds of changes in family functioning that systemic family and couples therapists see as indications of useful therapeutic change. It is intended to be serviceable in everyday practice; short, acceptable to clients and usable across the full range of our work. It is now being used as an outcome measure throughout the UK and Europe. In the UK, SCORE15 has now been included in the CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service) Outcome Research Consortium's approved measures. SCORE has been translated into a number of different languages, and research is currently looking at whether its translations are equally sensitive to registering clinical change.

Family Domains project, Tavistock & Portman NHS Trust

This project is investigating domains of interactional processes in families. The complexity of our social world leaves infinite room for misunderstanding and misinterpretation. One way that we overcome this is by organising our social interactions into discrete domains. We have described the features of three domains of family life, safety, attachment and discipline/expectation, and contrast them with exploratory processes, in terms of the emotions expressed, the role of certainty versus uncertainty, and the degree of hierarchy. Everything that people say and do in family life carries information about the type of interaction they are engaged in – i.e. the domain. Sometimes what family members say, or how they behave, does not make the domain clear, or participants in the social interactions are not in the same domain (there is a domain mismatch). This may result in major misunderstandings, irresolvable arguments or distress. The domains-based framework offers a way to enable these interactional processes to be examined, discussed, understood, and changed. We are currently researching how the identification of domains (clear and unclear, matched and mismatched) in observed family interactions, and in accounts of family processes, might provide a focus for treatment, and help to define criteria for evaluating outcomes.

SAFE study, National Academy for Parenting Practitioners at the Institute of Psychiatry, Brighton & Hove Youth Offending Services (YOS), Targeted Youth Support Services, Anti-Social Behaviour Team and West Sussex YOS

The SAFE Study (Study of Adolescents’ Family Experiences) is the first randomised controlled trial of Functional Family Therapy (FFT) within the UK. There is considerable evidence for the effectiveness of FFT in reducing recidivism and out of home placements in the USA, but there have been no UK based evaluations of the intervention.  The randomised controlled trial will involve 100 families and allow for a comparison of outcomes between children and young people who receive a range of interventions aimed at reducing crime and antisocial behaviour (treatment as usual) and those who receive treatment as usual plus FFT.

Families Changing Families: An Evaluation of the Marlborough Multi-Family Model in an Education Context, Marlborough Family Service, Central and North West London NHS Trust

The Marlborough Education Centre uses 'multiple family' therapy to support children and the parents of children who experience significant emotional, behavioural and social problems at school. The current project aims to explore whether the perceived success of the approach is supported by observable changes in key variables identified by staff and service users. The effectiveness of the service will be gauged in terms of service users' responses on reliable and valid outcome measures, administered at regular intervals over the course of a year. The same data is being collected from a comparison group who do not have access to the service. Finally, more open ended data in the form of a service user feedback interview is being collected at the end of treatment.

UEL HOMESEARCH