Bowenian Family Therapy Paper

Applying Bowenian and Structural Theories Valencia W. Wright Marriage, Couple, and Family Therapy HUMN – 6356 – 3 Dr. Emmett Roberts Walden University March 13, 2016 The Bowenian Therapy theory is multigenerational systems that is concentrated on the series of concepts and clinical. The creator of the Bowenian Therapy was Murray Bowen. The Bowenian therapy is somewhat like the Structural Family Theory because the both of them have steps that correlate together.

Wes mentioned in his book that, “The moves from Baltimore to the Bronx to Valley Fore didn’t change my ways of thinking. What changed was that I found myself surrounded by people-starting with my mom, grandparents, uncles, and aunts, and leaders to a string of wonderful role models” etc. (Moore, 2010: p.179). Wes’ life was defined by Minuchin’s structural family system. Although the family was not set in a traditional therapeutic fashion, the intertwined family involvement and strong link and connectivity with each other catapulted Wes’ outcome and course of his journey to differ from The Other Wes.

Evaluate the relational patterns in your family of origin, not yourself, in relation to the concept of differentiation. In an evaluation of the Bowen model, the relational patterns in my family of origin shall include the parent-child relationship and so forth that make up my adoptive family structural unit. For example, my adoptive family of origin is a typical two-parent middle-class traditional household, which is not generational on the maternal side. However, on the paternal side, there is a single parental unit set as the first generation by my grandmother (my father’s mother).

Evidenced Based Family Paper Brenda K. Foster Arkansas Tech University   Evidenced Based Family Paper The purpose of this paper is to select a family and enter into a contract to determine the needs of the family. Five visits spanning five weeks helped identify family interests, needs, and concerns. The paper identifies three priority family needs determined during family visits.

The reason being Bowen believed human behaviors view as an emotional and unit system thinking which may cause a domino effect. When previously reading according to Bowen individuals may separate themselves from their families. When affecting each other’s thought’s, actions and feeling cause a family to become distant or disconnected disarranging their family orientation for unity. Often, family member tends to seek each other’s attention, support, and approval as they may respond to each other’s distress, needs, and expectations. Which may become complex, stressful, out of control, causing a family member to become overwhelmed by unrealistic obligations and expectation.

At the age of nine is with the family starting getting therapeutic help. The parents reported that the therapy help them discover coping tools and ways to help adjust Jericka’s

Roles of the American Counseling Association The American Counseling Association (ACA) is dedicated to supporting counselor professional development (American Counseling Association [ACA], 2023). The American Counseling Association is a professional organization that advocates for the counseling profession while also protecting clients by enforcing ethical, culturally inclusive practices (ACA, 2023). Membership According to the American Counseling Association (2023), they provide the guidance and support essential for success during its members’ professional journeys.

In Part B of the paper, the writer will describe the structure and culture of the family origin from a Bowenian perspective. The Bowenian perspective allows the family members to think about where their problem(s) originate and try to come up with a plan to prevent the problem from spreading to the next generation and discuss the strength and problem areas in the family concerning health. According to Yarhouse and Sells, "Bowenian family therapy is helpful in assisting individual family members to differentiate between thinking and feeling and in recognizing boundaries between family members." (483) Approaching any situation the family needs to know their limitations with each other and different activities and food.

There is a growing complexity and diversity in families. Family systems theory provides a foundation for analysis of such complex and diversified families, making it easy to understand for effective therapy (Zastrow &

Understanding the internal structure of a family, the assessment must look at six different aspects of the internal family structure: family composition, gender, sexual orientation, rank order, subsystems, and boundaries (Wright & Leahey, 2013). Each different aspects contributes a piece to the internal structure of the family. Within the family composition, assessing the family unit or system, whether or not members are blood related, does the family contain children, the future commitment obligations (if any), and any caregiving functions to unit members (Wright & Leahey,

(1999). Bowen Family Systems Theory and Practice: Illustration and Critique. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Family Therapy,20(2), 94-103. doi:10.1002/j.1467-8438.1999.tb00363.x Richardson, C. A., Gilleard, C. J., Lieberman, S., & Peeler, R. (1994).

Differentiation is the ability to express your own individuality (Anderson & Sabatelli, 2011). Although each family member is different in this system, they all have their own individual characteristics. The parents also are a part of the family projection process. Since the parents are both free willed they project their own unresolved emotional attachments to the children. This meaning that the father and his alcoholism and the mother in her nonchalant tendencies with her kids.

Using this approach needs twenty to forty sessions (Gladding, 2011). If mental health benefits are not part of a client’s insurance plan, this method could become costly. Additionally, psychodynamic theory focuses primarily on the past, intergenerational history, instead of the current issue that may have brought a client in for counseling (Gladding, 2011). Moreover, this therapy is also more linear than not-it focuses in cause and effect interactions and often the therapy is either too limited to an individual or not broadened to family life (Gladding, 2011). Bowen’s method puts emphasis on family history and not repeating patterns of behavior from family members.

Family structure talks about family arrangement and composition which includes the roles and interactions (Edelman, 2014). According to Minuchin (2012), the family structural theory emphasis on the important of the family structure and its changes that occurs and how the individuals in the family relate collectively over time to put up and accept each other. Minuchin says further that a well-functioning family will choose how to solve and handle the family experience with a positive outcome. The goal of a structural family is to express the strengths in each other in critical moments, and helping each other through it. Developmental theory is the methods used as the viewpoint of family tasking and development through phases of life (Edelman, 2014).

In mapping this communication, the eight principles measured by Brown may become apparent not only to the therapist, but for the first time, the family may be able to see just how their functions are impeding the balance of their family and condoning strong exhibitions of universal traits within particular family members. The Bowen family therapy approach is invested in the intergenerational processes that are prevalent between generations (Bohlinger, 2010). By increasing differentiation between family members and between the generations, if possible, giving each triangle meaning rather than repetitive opportunities at increasing anxiety (Bohlinger, 2010). Focusing on this historical perspective, the origin of the family and environmental factors that surround the progress of this family, the genogram focuses itself on growth and self-actualization as the ultimate goal for the intervention (Nichols,