Abstract
This chapter provides an illustration of the Adolescent Identity Treatment model through a review of a clinical case. The patient is a 16-year-old girl (identifying data changed to protect confidentiality) presenting with symptoms of suicidality, depressed mood, chronic interpersonal difficulties, family conflict, and acute school refusal. The material is presented with a systematic focus on the phases of the model (Initial Evaluation, Parent/Family Assessment, Contracting, and Treatment) and the relevant components of each. This case highlights several key issues including differential diagnosis, the impact of pathology within the family system on adolescent development and functioning, and the importance of a family component to treatment. Over the course of this treatment, blockages to normal development were cleared and the patient developed the ability to hold an integrated view of self and other, and to differentiate self from other, with increased affective tolerance and greater cognitive understanding. The integration of identity led to increasingly adaptive and flexible functioning in school, with peers, and with her family.
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Foelsch, P.A., Schlüter-Müller, S., Odom, A.E., Arena, H.T., Borzutzky, A.H., Schmeck, K. (2014). Treatment. In: Adolescent Identity Treatment. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-06868-8_5
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