Family and family therapy in Russia

This article represents the information about family and family therapy in the context of culture, traditions and contemporary changes of social situations in Russia. The legislation of family rights are mentioned within items about marriage and family in the Constitution, Civil Code and Family Code of the Russian Federation which has changed during recent years. The definition of family and description of family structure are given through the prism of the current demographic situation, dynamics of statistics of marriage and divorce rates, mental disorders, disabilities and such phenomena as social abandonment. The actual curriculum, teaching of family therapy and its disadvantages, system of continuous education, supervision and initiatives of the Institute of Integrative Family Therapy in improvement of preparing of specialists who can provide qualified psychosocial assistance for the family according to the actual needs of society are noted. The directions of state and private practice of family counselling and therapy both for psychiatric patients and medical patients, for adults and children in a family systemic approach are highlighted with an indication of the spectrum of techniques and methods used by Russian professionals. The main obstacles and perspectives of development of family therapy in Russia are summarized.