Michael White Archives - Vancouver School for Narrative Therapy

Video: Moving away from family therapy’s idea of fuctionalism (Tomm & White, 1986)

Length: 8 minutes

In 1986 Karl Tomm begins to discuss his move away from the Milan Teams ideas (he had previously introduced the Milan Team into North America) and introduces the work of a new and talented therapist he has discovered to North America - Michael White. Karl has to be admired for his ongoing willingness to explore and expand upon new therapeutic ideas. Part of his legacy is that he always had a good nose for great therapists!

Video: Deconstructing a primary psychological principle (White, 2005)

Length: 5 minutes

Michael White deconstructs traditional 'surface and depth' practice constructions that situate the heart of therapeutic practice based in humanism, expert knowledge and other individualist practice understandings.

Video: A few ideas on narrative therapy practice (White, 2004)

Length: 6 minutes

Michael White outlines three primary ideas central to narrative practice

Video: The joy of externalizing pseudo-encopresis (White, 1987)

Length: 5 minutes

An absolutely charming 1987 lecture where Michael White discusses the history of how he ended up working with and establishing his practice ideas with children suffering with pseudo encopresis.

Reading: Deconstruction and therapy (White, 1991)

Length: 45 minutes

The Vancouver School for Narrative Therapy considers this 1991 paper by Michael White as one of the most important narrative therapy articles ever written.

Video: A few basic narrative therapy understandings (White, 2004)

Length: 7 minutes

Michael White's lecture outlines three important assumptions involved with narrative therapy practice.

Video: Storying and reauthoring in the landscapes of action and consciousness (White, 2005)

Length: 9 minutes

This key 2005 Michael White lecture outlines Jerome Bruner's ideas on the narrative metaphor and - shows how narrative therapy developed the structure of questions (through Bruner's ideas on the landscapes of action and identity)

Video: Early ideas on externalizing (White, 1987)

Length: 6 minutes

In this 1987 lecture Michael White begins to clearly outlines his novel ideas on externalizing problem conversations in therapy and the idea of restraints

Video: Gregory Bateson, negative explanation and restraint (White, 1986)

Length: 14 minutes

This rare and vitally important 1986 lecture features Michael White introducing his practice of therapy through a discussion of Gregory Bateson's ideas on negative explanation, double description and restraint. The lecture took place 4 years before his practice became known as narrative therapy.

Video: Ethics, conscious purpose and shaping our questions Michael White & David Epston interview (Madigan, 1994)

Length: 9 minutes

Stephen Madigan's 1994 interview clip with Michael White and David Epston asks questions about their therapeutic questions and leads to a discussion about the ethics of narrative therapy and the conscious purpose behind narrative therapy questions