Advanced Workshop

THIS WORKSHOP WILL BE OFFERED APRIL 11th & 12th, 2025, ONLINE THROUGH ZOOM AND IN-PERSON at the Riverside Hotel in Boise Idaho (2900 W. Chinden Blvd., Boise ID 83714). 

“Chosen Families: Multiple Constellations and the Indivisible Self ” 

Alfred Adler devised a revolutionary system for considering the self as a unified whole, shaped by context and the creative uniqueness of the individual.  This system offers continued relevance today, but is set with new challenges, as the family unit continues to evolve in response to changing times. Family constellation was the term Adler used to describe the individual’s internalized schema of the family system in which they were brought up.  In this compelling presentation, participants will be led to consider the presence of multiple family constellations that come to shape the experience of individuals with complex childhood histories.  Multiple family constellations may be considered for some individuals, and can be viewed as factoring into clinical dynamics and treatment, but also may offer certain adaptive benefits and forms of personal reliance.  Participants will then be presented with the concept of the Chosen Family, as a way for considering important connections individuals make later in life, and how this concept can be helpful in facilitating client guided treatment processes.

This workshop will also have 3 hours of boundaries training entitled: “WhoAm I Doing This For?: Navigating Boundaires in Service Roles” 

Boundaries can be tricky to navigate, particularly when you are serving families, working in the community, and interfacing with larger treatment systems.  The hats we may wear as therapist, assessor, advocate, consultant, community member, professional, mandated reporter, and community member can become quite confusing particularly when working with teams, and can lead us to question, “who am I doing this for, anyway?”.  We will begin unraveling the complexities of serving others with an unlikely call to be self-serving.  This will bring us to another unexpected understanding, that we are forever entering into multiple roles, and that it is our responsibility to honor these with our attention.   Participants can expect to walk away with renewed clarity on the multiple roles they are serving, and ways to harmonize these roles under professional identities that are founded in citizenship and of service of others. Identification of “boundary violations” will be made easier, through understanding these roles better.

Featured Speaker: Ben Rader, Psy.D.

Objectives of the workshop  Participants will be able to:

• • Utilize findings of the Chosen Families Inventory in facilitating client guided treatment strategies
    • Be able to understand and explain concepts of “social context” and “holism” and how these factor into a client’s presenting problems
    • Be able describe “Multiple Constellations” and “Missing Constellations” and how they can be applied to clinical practices 
    • Acquire new strategies for collecting and interpreting family histories collected on individuals who experienced significant changes in custody or care growing up 
    •  Gain awareness and familiarity with the “Chosen Families Inventory”, to the point of being able to conduct one in a clinical setting

Register Now For A Workshop

We are excited to announce that the ISIP Board has changed the previous requirment that Advanced Workshop Attendees are required to attend the Series Workshops prior to attending advanced workshops. Anyone that feels they have a good understanding of Adlerian Theory is now welcome to attend Advanced Workshops. Advanced workshops are designed for those that understand the basic Adlerian principals. Therefore there is little teaching of these principals in the workshops.