We have argued that it helps to distinguish between systemic family therapy as having developed through three phases and a fourth period, the twenty-first century, taking us into a look at current practice in 2009. More specifically, we have suggested that ithelps to differentiate the second phase – with its emphasis on the subjective and unique nature of family – and perspectives drawn from the third phase – featuring the application of social constructionist ideas where the emphasis is on commonalities ofexperience, for example, the common experiences of women in families and of fam-ilies of ethnic minorities. At the same time we have suggested that the first phaserecognized some of the connections between individual experience and culture,
