Positions and Polarities in Contemporary Systemic Practice: The Legacy of David Campbell

This book provides a rich collection of the work that has been informed by the ideas of the eminent family therapist and clinical psychologist, Dr David Campbell, who died in August 2009 . Contributors are drawn from different fields and describe models they have developed for organizational consultation, training, therapy and research. The book includes a range of important topics, key ideas which thread through contemporary theoretical frameworks, a research study into young people’s experience of parental mental illness, and the application of Dr Campbell’s use of semantic polarity theory in supervision, research and clinical practice. The innovative consultancy model developed by David Campbell with Marianne Groenbaek is elaborated here. Personal accounts of work in different contexts include a priest consulting within his community, the use of self in training systemic psychotherapists, the experience of consultation in academic settings, and a narrative of a training course for psychiatrists. Interspersed with these chapters are David Campbell's own reflections concerning the development of his ideas and practice over time. The book shows the value of simply expressed ideas applied in complex circumstances and will be welcomed by many different readers to enrich their thinking and practice.