Family and Systems Theory in Counselor Education: A PRISMA Systematic Review

Abstract

An exploration of peer-reviewed articles published in the last decade in 11 journals from the American Counseling Association (ACA) was conducted to identify the state of research on teaching family and systems theory in the field of counselor education. This study presents a review of the relevant literature using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) framework. While much has been published over the past decade specific to family and systems theory, few recommendations exist for counselor educators attempting to select the most recent and relevant publications to include in their counselor education curricula. A summary of the review and recommendations for counselor educators who are designing and teaching counselor education curricula on family and systems theory are provided.