Conference News

Thank you to all who attended this year’s Annual Spring Conference: “The New Brain Science of Connection.”  We are thrilled to have shared this experience with over 300 practitioners.  Across the board, feedback to all of the keynotes and presentations was outstanding!  We do take all input into consideration when planning for future conferences; so thank you to those of you who gave us your input.

Business Update

In addition to what’s covered in relation to the conference theme, CTAMFT also takes the opportunity, while we have so many members in attendance, to bring members up to speed on the state of CTAMFT.  If you missed the conference, please link here for a copy of the 2013 Business Report (which includes financials).

Poster Session Awards

This year CTAMFT’s Poster Committee received a record-breaking number of poster submissions.  We are also pleased to share we received submissions from all five MFT programs throughout the State.  There were 12 posters on display at this year’s conference, which were voted on by CTAMFT’s Board of Directors.  Congratulations to the following Poster Award Recipients, who each received $100.

 

Allison Collins:  Therapist Attachment and the Therapy Relationship (Collins, A. M. & Parker, M. L.)

The existing research supports the role of clients’ attachment style as an influence on the therapeutic relationship, which affects clinical outcomes. However, therapists’ attachment style has been relatively unexplored in the development of the therapeutic relationship. The goal of this study was to explore attachment style differences in the development of the therapy relationship. Findings have implication for clinical education and supervision.

Selena Gürman:  Partner/Parental Acceptance and Psychological Adjustment of Asian Adults (Gürmen, M.S., Ki, P., Rigazio-DiGilio, S. A., & Rohner, R. P.)

Parental acceptance-rejection theory predicts psychological adjustment tends to be affected by perceived partner acceptance and remembered parental acceptance. This study explored three questions with Asian adults in US: (1) Is partner acceptance correlated with psychological adjustment associated with parental acceptance? (2) Do remembrances of parental acceptance predict the association between partner acceptance and psychological adjustment? (3) Are there gender differences in these relationships? This study provides information to clinicians about Asian adult clients who deal with parental and partner acceptance and rejection.

Hyeseong Kang:  Clinical Use of the Story Stem Method in Marriage and Family Therapy: Theory, Research and Practice (Kang, H., Yoo, Y., & Robinson, J.)

Young children are known to have a limited capacity in describing their inner experience. The MacArthur Story Stem Battery (MSSB) is a standardized doll-play story-completion technique that can explore young children’s internal representations of family relationships. We provide the overview of theories and research of the method.Further, we discuss potential clinical usefulness of MSSB in marriage and family therapy, along with comparing story responses of a typical child with those of a child whose family is presented with specific problems.

Service Awards

Service to the Organization: Dorothy Timmermann is this year’s recipient of CTAMFT’s “Service to the Organization” Award.  Dorothy has been a Clinical Member of AAMFT since 1992.  She has been an Executive team Officer on the CTAMFT Board since 2008, when she began as Secretary through her Presidency, from 2010-2013.

Dorothy applied the same grace to taking minutes as she did to running the annual conference.  During her tenure, she reorganized staffing structure, gently moved the CTAMFT Board to create and hold to a strategic plan, and she welcomed speakers and members to the organization in such a warm and characteristic way that any leader with the luck to learn from her could not help but be influenced for the better.  Link here to read more about this recognition.

Service to Families Award:  This year, in honor of our conference theme of innovation, we are marking the way that love and relationship tends to break new ground.  The CTAMFT Board is delighted to present the Service to Families award to a couple who has terrifically impacted the fields of family studies, family therapy and family medicine. They have both blazed individual trails, while expanding their influence exponentially as a partnership.  Dr. Robert Ryder and Dr. Jeri Hepworth are this year’s honorees.  Link here to read more about this recognition.

2015 Conference

Save the date!  CTAMFT’s Annual Spring Conference is scheduled for Thursday, April 30-Friday, May 1, 2015.  Based on attendee’s recent feedback, we are planning some exciting changes for the 2015 conference.  Stay tuned for more information!

CTAMFT Call for Poster Submissions

CALL FOR POSTER PROPOSALS
2013 ANNUAL CONFERENCE
April 25-26, 2013
Mystic Marriott, Mystic, CT

Submission Deadline: January 15, 2013

The Poster Session Committee invites the submission of proposals for poster presentations during the 2013 CTAMFT Annual Conference. Posters will be prominently displayed during the Annual Conference. In addition, presenters will be asked to stand by their poster during the poster session to respond to comments and questions posed by conference attendees. Posters will be presented on Friday April 26th, the second day of the Conference.

A poster may be about research findings, clinical interventions,or any topic of interest to marriage and family therapists. Posters can include text, charts, tables, or other graphic representations suitable for conveying the message. We encourage posters that are creative and that address current issues in the field of family therapy. While the Poster Session is used to enhance the scope of information offered by the conference, posters that include work with children or families are encouraged.

Anyone who plans to attend the CTAMFT Annual Conference is welcome to submit a poster as a way to enhance the conference experience. Teams of researchers or clinicians may submit posters if at least one member of the team will be present at the Annual Conference. Posters will be selected based upon the quality and relevance of the proposed presentation, with preference given first to CTAMFT members, next to individuals and organizations in Connecticut, and finally to out-of-state presenters. Accepted presenters will be notified by February 15, 2013 and must confirm their attendance by March 1, 2013.

A complete Call for Posters Proposals can be found on CTAMFT.org.

More information is also available by contacting: Dr. Rachel Tambling, Poster Committee Chair

Letter from the President

Exciting Annual Conference News

Dorothy Timmermann, LMFT, CTAMFT Board President

2012 CTAMFT Annual Conference

Registration is now open for the CTAMFT Annual Conference planned for April 19-20, 2012 at the Mystic Marriott. We have expanded the conference and are excited to share with you the details including the addition of a NEW Career Fair, and a Regional Networking Event for Clinical Members called “Innovations that Work” to be held on Thursday evening. Our venue this year is a beautiful destination and we hope that attendees will consider spending a night or two to enjoy time together, special spa offerings, well deserved personal time or even some family time following the conference. Discounted rooms are available for both Thursday and Friday evenings, details can be found with registration information on our website.

Friday’s Conference features our Second Annual Poster Session, the NEW Career Fair, and a wonderful line-up of Speakers Presentations offering up to 7 Continuing Education Credits to Full-Day Attendees. We are also offering a Half-Day Ticket to those who wish to attend only an Afternoon Workshop, Poster Session and Career Fair.

Speaker presentations for the day include: “It Takes One To Tango: Doing Couples Therapy with Individuals” by Michele Wiener-Davis who is our keynote presenter. Dr. Krista Wells will provide a “Therapist Self-Care” presentation following our Luncheon. Afternoon Workshop offerings include: Dr. Tammy Nelson presenting: “Sex & Intimacy; Treating Couples with Desire Discrepancy and Sexual Dysfunction,” Dr. Rosalyn Dischiavo presenting: “From Work to Play: Reinforcing the Partner Bond by Re-Framing Pleasure,” and Michele Weiner-Davis presenting: “Affairs: A Step by Step Approach for Healing from Infidelity.” Poster presentations will cover a wide array of exciting and innovative topics to be determined.

We hope that you will join us this year for what is sure to be a pleasurable and engaging time!