A case study of virtually delivered emotion‐focused family therapy

Clinical psychologists and therapists are increasingly taking advantage of internet and mobile‐based technologies to deliver mental health services for individuals and groups since the COVID‐19 pandemic. However, there is a dearth of research evaluating the appropriateness of virtual platforms for family interventions. Further, no research has examined the effectiveness of weekly emotion‐focused family therapy (EFFT). This case study presents a virtually delivered 8‐week EFFT intervention, which supported caregivers to manage child symptoms of depression, anxiety, and anger, facilitate emotion processing, and strengthen relationships. Two parents from one family during a marital separation participated and completed brief measures of therapeutic alliance, family functioning, parental self‐efficacy, and parental and child psychological distress at 12 time points as well as a posttreatment semistructured interview. A strong therapeutic alliance was formed, and general family functioning, parental self‐efficacy, parent psychopathology, and child depression, anger, and anxiety symptoms improved over the course of therapy.