Running head: FAMILY COUNSELING APPROACH: A BOWEN PERSPECTIVE
1
Family Counseling Approach: A Bowen
Perspective Name
Liberty University
,FAMILY COUNSELING APPROACH: A BOWEN
PERSPECTIVE
2
Abstract
Relationships within a family unit are often complex. Some families are prone to hostility and
anger while others are resilient in dealing with day by day issues. A family system is shaped not
only from previous generations but also by their culture, ethnicity, race, gender, morals and
values, and their religious beliefs. Each element plays a crucial role in molding a sound and
functional family system. As these elements continue to develop over a lifespan, even as each
member of the family unit begins to separate households to form their families, the basic
foundation of the family still remains. The Bowenian theory places its general focus on past
generational relationships while at the same time examining present histories and relationships
within a family system. Negative areas in a family’s history are examined and followed toward
the present in an effort to re-examine detachments and unresolved emotional connections in
order to successfully repair relationships.
Keywords: family systems, Bowen, individuality, relationships, dysfunction
, FAMILY COUNSELING APPROACH: A BOWEN
PERSPECTIVE
3
Family Counseling Approach: A Bowen Perspective
Family counseling is a form of psychotherapy that evaluates the health and negative
functionings’ within a family system. Goldenberg and Goldenberg (2014) stated, “A family, like
a human body, is a system in which the components are organized into a whole that transcends
the sum of its separate parts” (p. 91). The relationship within a family unit is crucial to the
development of each individual within the family system. Each member plays an intricate role in
holding the family together or breaking the family apart. Although outside factors may contribute
to the dynamics between family members, ultimately it falls on the family to maintain a healthy
relationship. In most cases, each family member plays a role; the father as the household
provider, the mother as the caretaker, and the children, depending on their age, have their own
responsibilities inside or outside of the home (Goldenberg & Goldenberg, 2014).
Throughout the years, various approaches to family therapy have been evaluated in hopes
of developing beneficial resources for counselors to assist families in need of assistance.
Although many of these methods, such as the psychoanalytic, experimental, and structural
approaches have shown remarkable results in family therapy, the Bowenian therapy seems to
stand out as a front-runner. Murray Bowens’ and other contributors to this approach brought to
light the benefits of reaching to the past for answers that were affecting the present, and would
ultimately deter a family from reaching its full potential in the future, thus repeating negative
patterns instead of resolving them and finding solutions (Goldenberg & Goldenberg, 2014).
This composition will examine the history and development of the Bowenian approach, other
contributors to this approach, and techniques and interventions that are still used today to assist
families in creating a well-balanced environment.
1
Family Counseling Approach: A Bowen
Perspective Name
Liberty University
,FAMILY COUNSELING APPROACH: A BOWEN
PERSPECTIVE
2
Abstract
Relationships within a family unit are often complex. Some families are prone to hostility and
anger while others are resilient in dealing with day by day issues. A family system is shaped not
only from previous generations but also by their culture, ethnicity, race, gender, morals and
values, and their religious beliefs. Each element plays a crucial role in molding a sound and
functional family system. As these elements continue to develop over a lifespan, even as each
member of the family unit begins to separate households to form their families, the basic
foundation of the family still remains. The Bowenian theory places its general focus on past
generational relationships while at the same time examining present histories and relationships
within a family system. Negative areas in a family’s history are examined and followed toward
the present in an effort to re-examine detachments and unresolved emotional connections in
order to successfully repair relationships.
Keywords: family systems, Bowen, individuality, relationships, dysfunction
, FAMILY COUNSELING APPROACH: A BOWEN
PERSPECTIVE
3
Family Counseling Approach: A Bowen Perspective
Family counseling is a form of psychotherapy that evaluates the health and negative
functionings’ within a family system. Goldenberg and Goldenberg (2014) stated, “A family, like
a human body, is a system in which the components are organized into a whole that transcends
the sum of its separate parts” (p. 91). The relationship within a family unit is crucial to the
development of each individual within the family system. Each member plays an intricate role in
holding the family together or breaking the family apart. Although outside factors may contribute
to the dynamics between family members, ultimately it falls on the family to maintain a healthy
relationship. In most cases, each family member plays a role; the father as the household
provider, the mother as the caretaker, and the children, depending on their age, have their own
responsibilities inside or outside of the home (Goldenberg & Goldenberg, 2014).
Throughout the years, various approaches to family therapy have been evaluated in hopes
of developing beneficial resources for counselors to assist families in need of assistance.
Although many of these methods, such as the psychoanalytic, experimental, and structural
approaches have shown remarkable results in family therapy, the Bowenian therapy seems to
stand out as a front-runner. Murray Bowens’ and other contributors to this approach brought to
light the benefits of reaching to the past for answers that were affecting the present, and would
ultimately deter a family from reaching its full potential in the future, thus repeating negative
patterns instead of resolving them and finding solutions (Goldenberg & Goldenberg, 2014).
This composition will examine the history and development of the Bowenian approach, other
contributors to this approach, and techniques and interventions that are still used today to assist
families in creating a well-balanced environment.
