Dr Smith’s presentations are based on his professional experience as a psychologist, a clinical director, and executive director of Family Resources, a child abuse treatment and prevention organization in Pittsburgh. The agency serves more than 6,000 families each year.  For more than a decade, he has treated and supervised hundreds of cases of sexual, physical, and emotional abuse, and severe child neglect.

Dr. Smith also maintains a private practice and is an Adjunct Associate Professor at the Psychology Program at Duquesne University. He has presented lectures and conferences on child abuse and family emotional process throughout the US.

"Child abuse is a symptom of human functioning because it reflects basic emotional processes.  Individuals and families do not choose their symptoms.  Given enough stress, individuals and families will develop them."  Dr Walter Smith, Jr.,

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“A common struggle for professionals is developing clinical hypotheses which adequately explain how violence develops in some families but does not develop in others, even when these families experience similar events and circumstances.” W Smith  

Each day provides: A choice of collaborative workshops of case presentations

• Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Family Emotional Process - This role play presentation will demonstrate the effectiveness of a Bowen family systems theory approach with a Veteran and his family who have struggled to manage the devastating effects of PTSD, domestic violence and child abuse. Dr Linda MacKay. PhD.
• Applying a Bowen Theory lens to a case with violence by all family members - This presentation will discuss the case of a 7yo boy living with his mother & 2 siblings following parental separation.  He presents with dysregulated behaviour at school & home, and significant physical aggression towards his mother.  All other family members have used physical aggression in their attempts to manage in this situation.  The discussion will explore the triangles which help to understand the emotional processes which have resulted in this dilemma for this family, and provide some options for therapeutic engagement with this family.  Dr Lisa Newling (Child Psychiatrist Redbank House), and facilitator - Joanne Wright, Reg Psych.
•  Confronting the potential for marital violence - A case of a couple with young children who present with a concern about their escalating conflictual relationship.  Bowen's concept of nuclear family emotional process and the conflict - distance cycle will be used to discuss the case.  Discussion will also consider Bowen's description of the conflictual cocoon and the challenge of rising up out of fusion.  The exploration of each spouse's family of origin will also be considered.  Jenny Brown, MSW.

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• How Bowen family systems theory can provide a broad framework that enables professionals to work collaboratively with families that are overtly intense, or families that present subtle relationship tensions and conflicts.  
• Sustaining clinical neutrality in working with families with problems of child abuse and violence.
• Designing effective clinical intererventions addressing multiple issues for family members. 

Presentations which include:  

• The role of family emotional process in the clinical treatment of child abuse.
• Designing effective clinical interventions that addresses multiple issues for various roles of family members
• Sustaining clinical neutrality in clinical practice with families with problems of child abuse and violence
• How understanding the broad emotional processes, common to all families can increase the effectiveness of clinical practice.
• How Bowen theory can provide a broad framework that enables professionals to sustain clinical neutrality with families that are overtly intense or present subtle relationship tensions and conflicts.

Plus a live interview on FAMILY SYSTEMS RESEARCH AND CHILD ABUSE POTENTIAL with Dr Elizabeth A. Skowron, Ph.D. Associate Professor, Pennsylvania State University.  Dr Skowron is the principle researcher of the NIMH funded project-the Family Systems Lab.  Her research interests are:  the neurobiology of at-risk parenting, differentiation of self (i.e., autonomy & attachment), self-regulation, and the ways in which family systems promote children's competence.  http://familysystemslab.psu.edu/   

Professionals will benefit in being able to develop more accurate clinical hypotheses from which to design interventions with people in highly reactive family contexts.

***While the focus will be on family violence and child maltreatment, this conference will be useful for working with cases at all levels of family conflict; and an excellent way to build an understanding of Bowen family systems theory.

 “A psychological understanding of behaviour does not reduce personal and social responsibility.” Walter Smith

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