{"id":81301,"date":"2018-10-30T13:51:23","date_gmt":"2018-10-30T18:51:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thechicagoschool.edu\/?post_type=insight_posts&p=81301"},"modified":"2025-09-30T10:11:16","modified_gmt":"2025-09-30T15:11:16","slug":"what-is-internal-family-systems-therapy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thechicagoschool.edu\/insight\/psychology\/what-is-internal-family-systems-therapy\/","title":{"rendered":"MFT Spotlight: What is internal family systems therapy?"},"content":{"rendered":"

When you hear the term \u201cMarriage and Family Therapy\u201d, you might not immediately think of therapy on an individual level. But what about therapy meant to understand the relationships we have with different parts of our psyche? This branch of Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT) is called Internal Family Systems (IFS) Therapy and is quickly becoming more popular. But, what exactly is Internal Family Systems Therapy?<\/p>\n

To understand IFS Therapy, it\u2019s important to understand MFT. The Chicago School defines Marriage and Family Therapy as the field of psychotherapy aimed at treating individuals, couples, and families within a relational context. Internal Family Systems therapy is a branch of psychology connected to the individual portion of Marriage and Family Therapy.<\/p>\n

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What are Internal Family Systems?<\/h3>\n

As originally noted by Dr. Richard Schwartz, Ph.D.<\/a>, a person may internally take on several different familial roles when they\u2019re in an environment they perceive to be unsafe. This forms an Internal Family System; and these subpersonalities, or parts, act separately from the center Self. Dr. Schwartz explains that the Self is one\u2019s truest version, but that the subpersonalities can still have a positive purpose. It is only when the parts become extreme that issues arise.<\/p>\n

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Common subpersonalities<\/h3>\n

Traditional IFS Therapy categorizes these roles into three broad subpersonality types:<\/p>\n