Insoo Kim Berg
Encyclopedia
Insoo Kim Berg was a Korean-born American psychotherapist who was a pioneer of solution focused brief therapy
. She influenced the fields of psychotherapy
, consulting
, supervision
and coaching with concepts such as resource-orientation and brief therapy. In 1978, with her husband Steve de Shazer
, she co-founded the Brief Family Therapy Center (BFTC) in Milwaukee. She published ten highly acclaimed books. Insoo Kim Berg died 16 months after de Shazer in September 2005. The BFTC was closed in 2007 and the rights to BFTC’s training materials were transferred to the Solution Focused Brief Therapy Association.
. The choice to study pharmacy was influenced by her family, who was in the pharmaceutical manufacturing business. In 1957, she came to the United States to continue her pharmacy studies at the University of Wisconsin in Milwaukee, where she graduated with a B.Sc., a Master of Science (M.Sc.), and a social work (MSSW) degree. With her background in pharmacy and chemistry, she worked at the medical school and published on stomach cancer research.
After changing her interest to social work, she developed an interest in psychotherapy. She completed her post-graduate studies at the Family Institute of Chicago, the Menninger Foundation
, and the Mental Research Institute
(MRI) in Palo Alto, California, where John Weakland
was her mentor. At the MRI she also met her future husband, Steve de Shazer.
At Milwaukee Family Services she started her second career. "Berg consulted to a widely diverse range of institutions and programs including, among others, human service agencies, social service and mental health centers, drug and alcohol abuse treatment facilities, foster homes, homeless shelters, battered women's shelters, correction departments, home based family services programs, primary and secondary schools, various universities, the State of Michigan, and professional business coaching organizations".
She was an "extremely hard working person, and took obvious pleasure in her work and rarely took a day off. In her personal life, she enjoyed a wide range of physical activities including daily walks, stretching exercises, and gardening. As an advanced yoga practitioner, her flexibility and balance surpassed fellow classmates half her age. She liked to read well-written novels and enjoyed classical music but also appreciated the beauty of silence and the tranquility of nature, and knew how to savor the every day magic of satisfying conversation, healthful well-prepared food, and the welcome respite of a good night's sleep after a long journey or a day of hard work".
Her husband, Steve de Shazer, died in September 2005 in Vienna
, Austria
, and Insoo Kim Berg 16 Months later in Milwaukee. Insoo had a daughter, Sarah K. Berg, from her first marriage to Charles H. Berg.
.
She was a clinical member and approved supervisor for the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy
(AAMFT), and an active member in the Wisconsin Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, the National Association of Social Workers
, and the European Brief Therapy Association.
The BFTC closed its doors in December 2007 and the rights to BFTC’s training materials were given by Berg's sister, C. J. Kim, and her daughter, Sarah Berg, to the Solution Focused Brief Therapy Association, a group that de Shazer and Berg helped found in 2002.
"Instead of problem solving, we focus on solution-building. Which sounds like a play on words, but it's a profoundly
different paradigm".
Solution focused brief therapy
Solution focused brief therapy , often referred to as simply 'solution focused therapy' or 'brief therapy', is a type of talking therapy that is based upon social constructionist philosophy. It focuses on what clients want to achieve through therapy rather than on the problem that made them seek help...
. She influenced the fields of psychotherapy
Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy is a general term referring to any form of therapeutic interaction or treatment contracted between a trained professional and a client or patient; family, couple or group...
, consulting
Consultant
A consultant is a professional who provides professional or expert advice in a particular area such as management, accountancy, the environment, entertainment, technology, law , human resources, marketing, emergency management, food production, medicine, finance, life management, economics, public...
, supervision
Supervisor
A supervisor, foreperson, team leader, overseer, cell coach, facilitator, or area coordinator is a manager in a position of trust in business...
and coaching with concepts such as resource-orientation and brief therapy. In 1978, with her husband Steve de Shazer
Steve de Shazer
Steve de Shazer was a psychotherapist, author, and developer and pioneer of solution focused brief therapy...
, she co-founded the Brief Family Therapy Center (BFTC) in Milwaukee. She published ten highly acclaimed books. Insoo Kim Berg died 16 months after de Shazer in September 2005. The BFTC was closed in 2007 and the rights to BFTC’s training materials were transferred to the Solution Focused Brief Therapy Association.
Biography
Born in 1934, Berg was raised in Korea, and became a pharmacy major at Ewha Woman's University in SeoulSeoul
Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
. The choice to study pharmacy was influenced by her family, who was in the pharmaceutical manufacturing business. In 1957, she came to the United States to continue her pharmacy studies at the University of Wisconsin in Milwaukee, where she graduated with a B.Sc., a Master of Science (M.Sc.), and a social work (MSSW) degree. With her background in pharmacy and chemistry, she worked at the medical school and published on stomach cancer research.
After changing her interest to social work, she developed an interest in psychotherapy. She completed her post-graduate studies at the Family Institute of Chicago, the Menninger Foundation
Menninger Foundation
The Menninger Foundation was founded in 1919 by the Menninger family in Topeka, Kansas, and consists of a clinic, a sanatorium, and a school of psychiatry, all of which bear the Menninger name. In 2003, the Menninger Clinic moved to Houston. The foundation was started by Drs. Karl, Will, and...
, and the Mental Research Institute
Mental Research Institute
The Palo Alto Mental Research Institute is one of the founding institutions of brief and family therapy. Founded by Don D. Jackson and colleagues in 1959, MRI has been one of the leading sources of ideas in the area of interactional/systemic studies, psychotherapy, and family...
(MRI) in Palo Alto, California, where John Weakland
John Weakland
John H. Weakland was one of the founders of brief and family psychotherapy. At the time of his death, he was a Senior Research Fellow at the Mental Research Institute in Palo Alto, California, Co-Director of the famous Brief Therapy Center at MRI, and a Clinical Associate Professor Emeritus in...
was her mentor. At the MRI she also met her future husband, Steve de Shazer.
At Milwaukee Family Services she started her second career. "Berg consulted to a widely diverse range of institutions and programs including, among others, human service agencies, social service and mental health centers, drug and alcohol abuse treatment facilities, foster homes, homeless shelters, battered women's shelters, correction departments, home based family services programs, primary and secondary schools, various universities, the State of Michigan, and professional business coaching organizations".
She was an "extremely hard working person, and took obvious pleasure in her work and rarely took a day off. In her personal life, she enjoyed a wide range of physical activities including daily walks, stretching exercises, and gardening. As an advanced yoga practitioner, her flexibility and balance surpassed fellow classmates half her age. She liked to read well-written novels and enjoyed classical music but also appreciated the beauty of silence and the tranquility of nature, and knew how to savor the every day magic of satisfying conversation, healthful well-prepared food, and the welcome respite of a good night's sleep after a long journey or a day of hard work".
Her husband, Steve de Shazer, died in September 2005 in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, and Insoo Kim Berg 16 Months later in Milwaukee. Insoo had a daughter, Sarah K. Berg, from her first marriage to Charles H. Berg.
The Brief Family Therapy Center (BFTC)
In 1978, Berg co-founded the BFTC with her husband Steve de ShazerSteve de Shazer
Steve de Shazer was a psychotherapist, author, and developer and pioneer of solution focused brief therapy...
.
She was a clinical member and approved supervisor for the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy
American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy
The American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy is the professional association for the field of marriage and family therapy representing more than 25,000 marriage and family therapists throughout the United States, Canada, and abroad....
(AAMFT), and an active member in the Wisconsin Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, the National Association of Social Workers
National Association of Social Workers
The National Association of Social Workers is a professional organization of social workers in the United States. It had over 150,000 members as of January 2008 and provides guidance, research, up to date information, advocacy, and other resources for its members and for social workers in general...
, and the European Brief Therapy Association.
The BFTC closed its doors in December 2007 and the rights to BFTC’s training materials were given by Berg's sister, C. J. Kim, and her daughter, Sarah Berg, to the Solution Focused Brief Therapy Association, a group that de Shazer and Berg helped found in 2002.
Brief therapy
The conceptual work at the Mental Research Institute built the foundation for brief therapy and brief family therapy "initiating the systematic view, i.e., demonstrating that that a family or any interactional situation can be seen as if it were a system and thus it can be mapped following the 'laws' of general system theory" (De Shazer and Kim Berg, 1995: pg. 249)."Instead of problem solving, we focus on solution-building. Which sounds like a play on words, but it's a profoundly
different paradigm".
Literature
- Berg, I. Kim, "More than Miracles: The State of the Art of Solution-Focused Brief Therapy." 2007.
- Berg, I. Kim, "Tales of Solutions." 2001, W W Norton page
- Berg, I. Kim, "Building Solutions in Child Protective Services." 2000, W W Norton page
- Berg, I. Kim, "Interviewing for Solutions." (2nd ed). 1997 and 2001.
- De Shazer, Steve and Insoo Kim Berg, "The Brief Therapy Tradition." In: Weakland, John H. and Wendel A. Ray (eds) "Propagations. Thirty Years of Influence From the Mental Research Institute." Binghamton, NY, The Haworth Press, Inc., Chap. 20, pp. 249–252. 1995.
- Berg, I. Kim, "Family based services: A solution-focused approach." New York:Norton. 1994.
- Berg, I. Kim; "Solution-Focused Therapy: An Interview with Insoo Kim Berg." Psychotherapy.net, 2003.