Individual therapy focuses on the patterns, experiences, behaviors and feelings of just one person. Family therapy takes a look at the environment that person lives in and seeks to understand how all factors at play within an environment influence behavior. Your therapist will look at your whole family system—how everyone responds and reacts to one another—to understand where issues are arising. Once everyone has an idea of what the core issues are, your therapist can help your family work together to improve communication, renegotiate rules or roles and better address the needs of all family members.