You need to develop a specific activity that is for the vignette that you chose. You also have to list all the rules, all the consequences, and all the materia

Vignettes for Activity Development

Vignette 1:

Adam and Emily are referred to your practice, along with their daughter, Erin (12). Erin’s teacher recommended

that they see you, as she noticed that Erin seemed to be having difficulty at school, both academically and

socially. Erin has a younger brother, Seth (5) who is autistic. The family describes Seth as socially isolated, non-

verbal, at times violent, and often disruptive to their home life. Erin has recently begun saying that she “hates

Seth” and wishes he hadn’t been born. Adam and Emily describe taking turns spending one-on-one time with Erin

while the other parent is with Seth, noting how important they believe it is to give Erin a “normal life.” Erin no

longer asks to bring friends into their home and expresses little interest in a social life. She spends most of her

time in her room reading or listening to music. How would you structure your first session with this family?

Vignette 2:

Sandra (age 46) is referred to your equine team by a therapist in your community; the therapist has been seeing

her at her agency for the past 6 months and is feeling stuck with the case. Sandra has a lengthy (10 year) history

of substance abuse, and childhood marked by sexual and physical abuse by her biological father. She has been I

rehab numerous times, and has most recently been clean for 9 months. She lives alone and has been unable to find

consistent employment for the past year. Although she practices as an ER nurse for many years, she says that she

is isolated and has difficulty maintaining friendships, as her friends find her “too needy”. Her most recent intimate

relationship ended badly and she is reluctant to explore possible new relationships as she fears rejection. Sandra’s

therapist describes her as borderline and says that she “doesn’t want to get better”. How might you proceed with

your first session with Sandra?

Vignette 3:

Mark and Carrie (pseudonyms—both age 37) presented for their first equine session upon referral from their

couples therapists, with whom they had just completed a 12-hour intensive weekend. The equine session was the

experiential component of their comprehensive couples treatment.

They have been together for 4 years and have two dogs; Carrie also has 3 cats that she considers her “comforts.”

When they first got together she had to explain to Mark that she did not have any interest in “training” her cats as

she suggested; that she didn't value compliance—she wanted comfort and companionship from them, and that if

she wanted compliance she would not have gotten cats.

They describe themselves as being “on the opposite ends of the spectrum” in terms of communication. Carrie is

intuitive, analytical, and interpretive; this works well for her in her sales job, as she is ale to thoughtfully analyze

multiple layers of communication and develop a successful sales strategy. Mark, on the other hand, is a fire

fighter, and trains search and rescue dogs. He sees his communication style as goal-directed, highly focused, but

not rigid; rather, he sees himself as necessarily flexible, as his training requires that he be able to adapt quickly in

high intensity, life and death situations.

Each of them believes their style works well for them, but that problems occur when their individual styles lead to

conflicts that become unmanageable. Carrie says that Mark deals with “time compression” situations well and

communicates efficiently to get things done quickly. She, however, has a looser sense of time and does not like to

be rushed. When he pushes her to move quickly, she becomes anxious; he becomes more goal-directed and tries

to resolve any issue she has so that they can move forward immediately. She gets even more anxious and fears he

will become angry. Interpersonally, it was immediately clear that Mark is a fast-talking, aggressive communicator

who is adept at taking charge in high intensity situations, while Carrie is thoughtful, reflective, and more inclined

to assess carefully before speaking.