Family Systems Vocab 3/31

A form of communication which consists of quantities, differences, and analogies. This communication has connotative meaning and consists not of words, but of nonverbal, paraverbal, and contextual aspects of interaction. This is when you identify the process of a family therapy session.

A clinical technique which describes a goal of eliciting differences in perceptions about events, problems, and relationships from each family member.

The meaning of a statement. Can include nonverbal clues.

A concept which asserts that reality is created through the process of interacting with one's environment rather than by discovery, that reality is constructed in one's mind through perturbations from the environment.

A concept which refers to changing the paradoxical nature of a family in which symptomatic behavior actually maintains the homeostatic and dysfunctional tendencies in a system. For example, in response to a system's resistance to change, the therapy team may offer a message prescribing no change based upon positive connotation, interpreting all family behavior as good.

A clinical technique which involves the gradual separation of one or more family members from a dysfunctional triangular relationship.

A term which describes the process in a system where uncorrected positive feedback produced an escalation of symptoms. For example, a high conflict in a dyadic relationship may escalate into abusive behavior toward one another.

A concept which defines the process whereby a specific message is stated but also contradicted simultaneously by a second mutually exclusive message. This occurred in context of a close relationships where the recipient was confused and unable to comment on the perceived contradiction.

A process where adult children, through understanding intergenerational family dynamics and the potential victimization that may have occurred from one generation to the next, learn to forgive one's parents for past negative interactions.

A concept that describes the process whereby changes in a system may leave unaltered the underlying organization of that system. For family therapists, a clinical family may be said to undergo this when it adapts or accommodates its symptomatic functioning.

A concept that describes when certain structural aspects of one system match the structural aspects of another. The family therapist may seek to match therapeutic role or style with that of the family system.

A concept that describes the process of change in a system which alters the fundamental organization of the system. A symptomatic system can be said to undergo this when a therapeutic intervention disrupts the pattern of symptomatic interaction so that it ceases.

A concept which defines a defensive maneuver whereby an individual separates the good from the bad in an external object and internalizes this separated perception. It has be used to describe an interactional dynamic within family systems where positive and negative feelings and thoughts are separated and experienced in isolation from one another. This distorts the family's perception and experience of reality in such a way that the family tends to view internal as well as external experiences in black and white issues without regard for the complexity of the total reality.

A concept which describes a relationship where the members have relatively equal status and power. This may display greater conflict because the relatively equal status can cause disputes to escalate leading to greater disruption.

An intervention in which the therapist acts upon the system to produce a change or accomodation. The system must respond and compensate for this intervention.