TRANSGENERATIONAL FAMILY THERAPIES

Differentiation of Self

Ability to maintain self while staying emotionally connected

Fusion

Blurring of boundaries and loss of autonomy

Differentiation of Thinking from Emotion

Separating thoughts from feelings to reduce reactivity

Triangles

Three-person system that stabilizes relationships

Triangling

Involving a third party to reduce anxiety

Rigid Triangle

Chronic triangle causing dysfunction

Nuclear Family Emotional Process

Patterns families use to manage anxiety

Conflict

Disagreement used to manage anxiety

Symptoms

Physical or emotional manifestations of stress

Distancing

Emotional or physical withdrawal

Emotional Cutoff

Extreme distancing from family

Nuclear Family Projection Process

Parents project issues onto a child

Sibling Birth Order

Roles based on birth position

Multigenerational Transmission Process

Patterns passed across generations

Undifferentiated Ego Mass

Family members cannot separate emotions

Basic Self

Stable sense of identity

Pseudoself

Situational identity influenced by stress

Genogram

Visual map of family relationships

I Statements

Speaking from personal perspective

Relational Ethics

Fairness in relationships over time

Trustworthiness

Balance of give-and-take

Ledger

Record of relational debts and credits

Entitlement

What one is owed

Obligations

What one owes others

Indebtedness

Relational debt

Loyalty

Intergenerational obligation

Invisible Loyalty

Unconscious loyalty patterns

Legacy

Family expectations passed down

Merit

Earned relational credit

Multidirected Partiality

Therapist supports all perspectives

Exoneration

Understanding past generations with compassion

Rejunction

Repairing relationships

Disjunction

Breakdown in relational fairness

Fairness

Balance of giving and receiving

Mutuality

Reciprocal trust in relationships

Destructive Entitlement

Harmful attempts to reclaim fairness

Revolving Slate

Repetition of harmful patterns

Parentification

Child takes on adult roles

Split Loyalties

Child forced to choose between caregivers

Exploitation

Taking advantage of dependency

Scapegoating

Blaming one family member

Object Relations Theory

Internalized images shape relationships

Introjects

Internalized representations of others

Projective Identification

Projecting unwanted self onto others

Contextual Family Therapy

Ivan Boszormenyi-Nagy's multigenerational, relational therapy model emphasizes ethics, fairness, and relational responsibility within family systems. It focuses on how loyalty, trust, and justice are shaped across generations and impact current relationships.

Bowen Family Systems Theory

Bowen Family Systems Theory (BFST), developed by Murray Bowen, views the family as an emotional unit driven by anxiety, emotional reactivity, and interdependence across generations. Its core concept is an individual's differentiation of self.