What type of approach is systematic?
Post-Modern
What two theories are in the systematic approach?
- Family theory
- Systems theory
What does the systematic approach say about people?
- people are best understood through assessing their interactions within the family they live within
- people tend to self regulate to resist change within their family unit - homeostasis
- focus on interactive parts and view them as a whole
Where does the systematic approach believe problems come from?
- symptoms of how the system functions
- based on assumptions that problematic behaviour: serves a function or purpose in the family and is unintentionally maintained by the family process
- circular vs linear causality
What are the types of problems viewed in the systematic approach?
- enmeshed
- disengaged
- subsystems
- boundaries
- hierarchies
- coalitions
- detouring
- parentification
What is an enmeshed family?
too engaged in the family and children hold onto the values of their parents
What is a disengaged family?
uninvolved
What are subsystems in systematic?
used to differentiate roles and functions
What are boundary problems?
rigid or diffused
What are hierarchy problems?
power dynamics
What are coalition problems?
alliances
What are detouring problems?
detracts attention from the real source of conflict (scapegoating)
What are parentification problems?
child taking on parental role
How does the systematic approach support change?
- creates insight by drawing awareness to interactive patterns over generations (genogram maps)
- facilitates de-triangulation
- reframe problems as systematic
- enhances differentiation (take I position in communication)
- coaching clients to change emotional reactivity
What is the systematic therapeutic process?
- therapist joins family system and maintains leadership role
- reframes problems as systematic
- highlights problems maintaining interactions
- restructuring boundaries and re-balancing hierarchies
What are the techniques used in the systematic approach?
- roles and communication styles awareness
- elicit and recreate family rules
- circular questions
- genograms
- family resculpting
What are the roles and communication styles?
- blamer
- distractor/irrelevant
- placator
- super reasonable
- congruent
What is the blamer role?
this person acts as if he has the power in the relationship, blames others for things that go wrong. this position is designed to show dominance and is actually based on fear
What is the distractor/irrelevant role?
this person does and says things that take the focus off the issue of the moment. this position highlights the power of irrelevance, in that it serves a useful purpose, in spite of its apparent absence of value
What is the placator role?
this person overtly agrees with people whether he does or not, even if he is furiously angry. this “whatever you say” position devalues self in relation to the other
What is the super reasonable role/
this person lacks emotion, presenting himself in a very logical way. being cut off from feelings, which have no bearing on the facts, drives this position
What is the congruent role?
this person expresses feelings in congruence with what is being said, the body language, as well as the verbal language, all match the feelings
What is family sculpting?
physically arrange seating to represent the person’s symbolic view of family relationships
