Ch. 10 Family Systems Theory

Question 1

American Family Therapy Academy (AFTA)

Answer 1

founded by Bowen, a non-profit organization of “leading family therapy teachers, clinicians, program developers, researchers, and social scientists, dedicated to advancing systemic thinking and practices for families in their ecological context” (http:// www.afta.org/).

Question 2

autonomy

Answer 2

in Bowen theory, a designation for the level of differentiation in a person that signals the ability to think through a situation clearly. In ethics, the right of individuals to make decisions and choices.

Question 3

Bowen family therapy

Answer 3

a therapeutic approach developed by Murray Bowen in which emphasis is placed on the fact that the past is active in the present.

Question 4

Bowen transmission process

Answer 4

the idea that coping strate-gies and patterns of coping with stress tend to be passed on from generation to generation.

Question 5

codependency

Answer 5

a dynamic within a family in which one member underfunctions while another member overfunctions

Question 6

cutoff

Answer 6

a situation in which family members deal with fusion and a lack of differentiation by distancing them-selves physically or emotionally from others.

Question 7

detriangulation

Answer 7

the process of being in contact with others and yet being emotionally differentiated.

Question 8

differentiation of self

Answer 8

a level of maturity reached by an individual who can separate his or her rational and emo-tional selves. Differentiation is the opposite of fusion.

Question 9

emotional reactivity

Answer 9

a Bowen concept used to describe a situation in which feelings overwhelm thinking, thus drowning out individuation

Question 10

family projection

Answer 10

according to Murray Bowen, the tendency of couples to produce offspring at the same level of differentiation as themselves.

Question 11

fusion

Answer 11

the merging of intellectual and emotional functions so that an individual does not have a clear sense of self and others. There is discomfort with autonomy in relationships, the wish to psychologically merge with another, and difficulty in tolerating differences of opinion. Fusion is the opposite of differentiation.

Question 12

“I” position

Answer 12

a part of differentiation that allows a person to make “I” statements.

Question 13

“I” statements

Answer 13

statements that express feelings and thoughts in a personal and responsible way that encourages others to express their opinions.

Question 14

nuclear family emotional process

Answer 14

the emotional forces in families that operate over the years in recurrent patterns

Question 15

off-schedule events

Answer 15

major life events, such as marriage, death, and the birth of children, occurring at different times than is the norm.

Question 16

pseudo individuation/pseudo self

Answer 16

a pretend self in which a person appears to be differentiated from his or her family of origin but is not. This concept refers to the attempt by young people who lack an identity and basic coping skills to act as if they had both

Question 17

sibling position

Answer 17

a concept in Bowen family therapy according to which people can develop fixed personality characteristics based on their functional birth order in the family. The more compatible their sibling positions are, the better is a couple’s chance for a successful marriage.

Question 18

societal regression

Answer 18

the deterioration or decline of a society struggling against too many toxic forces (e.g., overpopulation and economic decline) countering the tendency to achieve differentiation.

Question 19

triangle

Answer 19

the basic building block of any emotional system and the smallest stable relationship system in a family.

Question 20

triangulation

Answer 20

projection of interpersonal dyadic difficulties onto a third person or object

Question 21

undifferentiated

Answer 21

an emotional dependency on one’s family members, even if one is living away from them.