The Family Systems Theory (FST) was developed in the late 1960s by Murray Bowen. Bowen believed that in order to change an individual the change must begin with the family. Family can be defined by long-term roles and relationships between people who may or may not be related by blood or marriage. A well functioning family is not defined by the lack of stress or conflict, but by how successfully they handle stress or conflict together. Among FST therapies there are three different approaches. Structural family therapy is one approach. It was designed by Salvador Minuchin. This therapy looks at family relationships, behaviors, and patterns family. Another approach is Strategic family therapy. It was developed by Milton Erickson, Cloe Madanes
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Every family system has a number of small groups usually made up of 2-3 people. Subsystems are a grouping in which family members are “placed” according to responsibilities (male vs. female), age (older or younger), or role (parents and children). Each subsystem has its own boundaries and rules. When boundaries/rules are ignored with the family’s system it can become dysfunctional. For example, if a child begins fighting in school and his father refuses to let his wife (the child’s mother) set an appropriate consequences, a dysfunction may begin between the father and son. “For proper family functioning the boundaries of the subsystem must be clear.” (Jones-Smith, …show more content…
Triangles can happen many different ways, but it always involves a pair of family members including or rejecting a third family member. Almost all two-person relationships go through phases of being close and then distant. Usually when including a third person in the two-person group it is because the two-person group is experiencing stress and it is a way to try and stabilize the relationship. Detriangulation is an intervention that a therapist can use to help family members establish differentiation of self. The therapist can have one family member take a position on an issue and continue that position even if the other family member disagrees. Not only does this strategy help establish differentiation of self for individual members, it also allows each person to remain detached and unreactive to the potential “unhealthy” triangle. As neutral party, the therapist is able to help encourage change in the family
Every family system has a number of small groups usually made up of 2-3 people. Subsystems are a grouping in which family members are “placed” according to responsibilities (male vs. female), age (older or younger), or role (parents and children). Each subsystem has its own boundaries and rules. When boundaries/rules are ignored with the family’s system it can become dysfunctional. For example, if a child begins fighting in school and his father refuses to let his wife (the child’s mother) set an appropriate consequences, a dysfunction may begin between the father and son. “For proper family functioning the boundaries of the subsystem must be clear.” (Jones-Smith, …show more content…
Triangles can happen many different ways, but it always involves a pair of family members including or rejecting a third family member. Almost all two-person relationships go through phases of being close and then distant. Usually when including a third person in the two-person group it is because the two-person group is experiencing stress and it is a way to try and stabilize the relationship. Detriangulation is an intervention that a therapist can use to help family members establish differentiation of self. The therapist can have one family member take a position on an issue and continue that position even if the other family member disagrees. Not only does this strategy help establish differentiation of self for individual members, it also allows each person to remain detached and unreactive to the potential “unhealthy” triangle. As neutral party, the therapist is able to help encourage change in the family