This article reports research on family therapy interactions. The research uses discourse analysis to explore the ways in which parents construct their reasons for requiring family therapy, the outcomes they desire from it and orientations to their progress. The analysis suggests that parents often position their child as the problem and this is something that is rarely challenged or questioned by the child. Parents express a desired outcome of ‘fixing’ the child and highlight this as what they believe the purpose of family therapy to be. During therapy they emphasize their progression and consider improvements in family functioning. By understanding parental perceptions we can move research forward in understanding engagement in therapy and attrition, and integrate guidelines on service improvements with what parents feel is beneficial. Practitioner points Parents manage their presence in family therapy in many ways and typically position the child as the reason for their attendance. Offering the child some time alone with the therapist has potential to uncover the child's perspectives on goals and outcomes which may be inhibited by parental presence. Anticipating that the child may be described in derogatory or negative ways at the start can help the therapist to reframe the problem in more helpful ways.