Augustus Y. Napier explains the process by which he conceived and wrote The Family Crucible. He completed his doctoral work in psychology under Carl A. Whitaker, a renowned family therapist in the 1970s at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Napier learned a great deal from his time working with Whitaker and was inspired by Whitaker’s unique approach, as well as by the families who were willing to endure challenges to change their situation. Family therapy was a new and growing field in the 1970s, and Napier chose to document the changes he saw in families during his time with Whitaker. At first, he wrote from the perspective of fact and detail but found it didn’t capture the essence of family therapy.

Napier took a step back and tried to write from memory, blending examples and explanations from multiple therapy sessions rather than adhering strictly to fact-based accounts of discrete sessions. The book’s main focus is on the Brice family, but as Napier chose to integrate other examples, he feels the book should be considered fiction. He does not claim to have produced an objective piece of writing, instead admitting that it is entirely his own perspective.