1st Edition
Decolonizing Family Systems, Relationships, and Practices Intersectional Perspectives
Centering liberation, justice, and cultural wisdom in the heart of relational work, this book provides a comprehensive and integrative examination of human development and the family life cycle through a decolonized, anti‑racist, and intersectional lens.
Written by a diverse collection of practitioners, educators, and scholars, tht book challenges the colonial roots of foundational family therapy models and offers bold alternatives that center agency, community, and healing. Chapters discuss essential topics such as family development and stages of the life cycle, relationship norms, gender and sexuality, neurovariance, grief and loss, healing, and more – all while exploring the ways in which systemic inequalities shape the lived experiences of individuals and families from diverse backgrounds. With real‑life stories and perspectives, this book provides essential practical guidance and tools to help mental health practitioners navigate and resist systemic barriers in their work and support an ongoing practice that fosters more inclusive, equitable, and responsive therapeutic relationships.
This book offers a new path forward for anyone who wants to practice healing in ways that are culturally affirming, politically conscious, and radically human. It is an essential resource for graduate students and practitioners in mental health programs seeking to develop their skills in working with diverse families.
Introduction: Breaking the Jar: Decolonizing Family Therapy from the Inside Out
Jennifer M. Sampson and Fiona E. O’Farrell
Part I: Unpacking Origins: Decolonizing the Foundations of Family Therapy
1. Breaking the Colonial Frame: Power, Privilege, and Family Therapy
Cayla Minaiy
2. From Pathology to Liberation: Decolonizing Family Well-Being
Zain Shamoon and Jarryn Robinson-Ellis
3. Beyond the Binary: Decolonizing Gender, Sexuality, and Family Development
Sar Surmick
4. Family Therapy in the Era of AI: Will Technology Advance or Erase Indigenous and Non-Western Practices?
Jacey Saucedo Coy
Part II: Decolonizing Life Cycle Narratives –Systemic Intersections in Family Development
5. Goodbye Birds and the Bees: How Systemic Therapists Can Use a Reproductive Justice Framework to Rethink Family Building
Jennifer M. Sampson
6. Rethinking Childhood: Neurovariance, Cultural Strengths, and Decolonialized Development Perspectives
Jessica Leith Claus
7. Grieving in the Wake of Colonialism: Using Creative Arts to Explore, Process, and Integrate Bio-Psycho-Social-Cultural Perspectives of Loss and Grief Across the Lifespan
Dani Baker and Alyssa Griskiewicz
Part III. Beyond Therapy: Collective Healing, Advocacy, and Alternative Knowledge Systems
8. Liberating Love: Rewriting the Fairytale and Expanding Relationship Norms
Fiona E. O’Farrell
9. Agency-Centered Relational Therapy: Decolonizing Healing and Relationship Work
Tai Lee
10. How Family Therapy Knowledge is Made and The World it Makes: Nonprofit Practice, Capitalism, and The Politics of Knowledge
marcela polanco
Conclusion
Jennifer M. Sampson and Fiona E. O’Farrell
Biography
Jennifer M. Sampson, PhD, LMFT, CST-S, is an educator, systemic clinician, AASECT Certified Sex Therapist and Supervisor, and AAMFT Approved Supervisor.
Fiona E. O’Farrell, PhD, LMFT, CST-S, is the Program Director of the Marriage and Family Therapy program at Pacific Lutheran University, an AASECT Certified Sex Therapist and Supervisor, and an AAMFT Approved Supervisor.
