Friday, October 13, 2023 – 8:30 AM – 4:00 PM
Saturday, October 14, 2023 – 9:00AM – 4:30 PM
Hybrid Format – Available both in person* and online** via Zoom. All registrants will have access to a video recording of the conference.
Download the 2023 Fall Conference Schedule & Speaker Bios
About the 2023 Pittsburgh Family Systems Conference and Symposium
Since its inception in 1979 by Paulina McCullough MSW, WPFC’s annual fall conference and symposium has provided a forum for lay and professional persons to present their ideas and efforts to apply family systems theory. Continuing a multi-year theme of challenges in applying Bowen theory, this year’s conference focuses on the intriguing concept of emotional cutoff. Keynote presentations addressing this concept will start off each day and be followed by talks on various aspects of cutoff and related topics in family systems theory. Lively panel discussions among the speakers and Q & A sessions for both in-person and online participants will round out the two-day event.
An optional, informal reception will conclude the day on Friday, featuring light refreshments and the opportunity to socialize with in-person presenters, fellow attendees, and WPFC faculty and board.
Conference Theme
Murray Bowen M.D. described his concept of emotional cutoff in 1975 as a process between generations of a family, varying in intensity with the degree of unresolved emotional attachment between young adults and their parents. For the younger generation, getting geographical or emotional distance from their parents may seem to promise relief from the felt intensity of parental pressure or conflict.
In fact, distance can be useful in assuring safety and navigating challenging situations between the generations and in a variety of other relationships. However, relationship distance and cutoff can also result in long-term declines in the effectiveness of families and social groups. Avoided conflicts can remain unaddressed and unresolved, and systems can become less flexible and innovative in addressing future challenges. The stress and anxiety of an original conflict can be sustained in normalized distant relationships, long after the original triggering issues are forgotten.
This conference will explore emotional cutoff from diverse perspectives including its relationship to transgenderism, clinical case studies featuring cutoff, personal observations of family cutoff and efforts to bridge it, and the benefits of extended family connections, to name a few.
Keynote Presenter
WPFC is pleased to announce Priscilla Friesen LICSW as the conference keynote speaker. Ms. Friesen wrote the seminal article, “Emotional Cutoff and the Brain,” which was published in Peter Titelman’s book, Emotional Cutoff, in 2003. Click here to download your free copy of the article!
Ms. Friesen first encountered Bowen family systems theory in 1976 while in graduate school at the University of Kansas. Once kindled, her interest compelled her to move to Washington DC and begin her 45 years’ professional association with Bowen theory and the Bowen Center for Study of the Family.
In her decades of teaching and clinical work, Ms. Friesen has pursued a fascination with how the brain, mind, and relationships operate in synchrony. Her two presentations at this conference will reflect this enduring interest:
Registration Fees
WPFC offers registration for live attendance—in person and online—and to view the recording of the conference for those unable to attend on the scheduled date. Social Workers, LPCs and LMFTs who register to view the conference recording are still eligible to receive all credit hours. This option is not currently available to Psychologists due to APA guidelines.
Please note: the conference recordings will be available to all registrants for a period of 60 days.
The WPFC Scholarship Fund was created to provide financial aid to students, clinicians and other professionals facing financial hardships. This fund is made available through the generosity of our donors to keep education accessible and Bowen Family System Theory within reach to further one’s own work.
If you would like to receive financial assistance for this program, please click here to send an email to rebecca@wpfc.net for more information.
COVID Protocol
Western PA Family Center asks those who plan to attend the conference in person to follow all state, local, and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention COVID-19 safety guidelines. Please do not attend in person if you have any cold, flu, or COVID symptoms. WPFC will accommodate any needed change in registration from in-person to online. Masks for in-person attendees are optional.
Learning Objectives
WPFC_Oct 2023_Symposium – Learning Objectives
Continuing Education Credits
Social Work:
**CEs are available for Social Workers, LPCs and LMFTs who register to view the recorded conference.**
Pennsylvania LSW/LCSW, LPC and LMFT continuing education credits are a flat fee of $15.00 per person.
This program is offered for 12 hours of social work continuing education through co-sponsorship of the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Social Work, a Council on Social Work Education-accredited school and, therefore, a PA pre-approved provider of social work continuing education. These credit hours satisfy requirements for LSW/LCSW, LPC and LMFT biennial license renewal. For information on social work continuing education call (412) 624-6902.
Please note:
Psychology:
Pennsylvania Psychology continuing education credits will be provided for a fee of $25.00 paid directly to GPPA.
All Psychology CE recipients must attend the conference live, both days, (in person or online via Zoom) to receive their credits. After the program has been completed, recipients will receive a link to GPPA’s website to submit a training evaluation and submit their CE payment online.
CONTACT
Conference Registration questions: Contact Rebecca Keller at rebecca@wpfc.net
WPFC Programs: Faculty Director – Cynthia Larkby, Ph.D. at Cynthia.larkby.phd@icloud.com
