Bowen and Friedman - Amazon S3and+Friedman.pdf · Bowen theory •Bowen theory, based on the idea that the human is part of evolutionary history, is a descriptive theory of the emotional

CourtesyofAnneS.McKnight,PhD,LCSW

BowenandFriedman:TwoSystemsThinkers

AnneS.McKnightDirector,

BowenCenterfortheStudyoftheFamily


InwhatwaydoesFriedmanreflectBowentheoryandinwhatwayarehisideashisown?


InwhatwaydoesFriedmanreflectBowentheoryandinwhatwayarehisideashisown?

Howdowenotconflatethetwo?


Bowensoughttocreateascienceofhumanbehavior

groundedinthehumanfamily’splaceinthenaturalworld.


Intheeightconcepts,hesoughttodescribetheemotionalprocessinthehumanfamilybasedinevolutionaryhistoryandcommonto

allhumanfamilies.


NaturalSystemsTheory

• Thecapacityofthesystemtoadapt.• Differentiationisbasedonvariation.• Anxietyfuelsreactivityandinabilitytoselfregulate.


Thefamilysystemisanemotionalunit.Thefamilysystem“isconsideredtoincludethosefamilymembersmostinvolvedinthefamilyinterdependence”.

Bowen,FTiCP 113


Asymptominanindividualreflectsafamily’s(congregation’s)inabilitytoadapttothechallengesitfaces.

stressors familyanxiety


EdwinFriedman

• Abrilliantandcharismaticproponentofsystemstheory.• Heintroducedawholegenerationofclergyandthementalhealthprofessionalstosystemsideas.


Friedman

• wasengaging,funny,andentertaining.• madesystemideasaccessibletocongregationalleaders.• usedfablesandmetaphorstomakeideasofemotionalprocessunderstandable.

• wasabletocommunicatehowanxietyandreactivitygotinthewayofclearleadershipinacongregation.


Friedman:Fieldtheory

• “Afieldisanenvironmentofforcethat,uponachievinghomeostasis,functionstomaintainthatbalancethroughinneradjusting”.FoN,250


Friedman:Fieldtheory

• “Afieldisanenvironmentofforcethatuponachievinghomeostasisfunctionstomaintainthatbalancethroughinneradjusting”.FoN,250

• Webster:fieldtheoryisanytheoryinphysicsconsistingofadetailedmathematicaldescriptionoftheassumedphysicalpropertiesofaregionundersomeinfluence(asgravitation).


VonBertalanffy:GeneralSystemsTheory

• “Thereexistmodels,principles,andlawsthatapplytogeneralizedsystemsortheirsubclasses,irrespectiveoftheirparticularkind,thenatureoftheircomponentelements,andtherelationor'forces'betweenthem.Itseemslegitimatetoaskforatheory,notofsystemsofamoreorlessspecialkind,butofuniversalprinciplesapplyingtosystemsingeneral.”(1968)


Thevirusasametaphor

• Thevirusisacellthatdoesnotreproduceandisnotself-sufficient.

• Itdependsonthehostcelltosurvivebuttakesover.• Somepeoplebehavelikevirusesorpathogens,sothetaskoftheleaderistobetterregulateherreactivitywhenfacedwithheightenedanxietyduetoirresponsiblebehavior.

• Whentheleadercanworkonmanagingreactivityandstayconnectedtotherelationshipsystem,hecanwardofftheinvasionofvirustypebehavior.


Evilintheworld

• FriedmancitesexamplesinWWll suchasChamberlain,whofailedtostanduptotheevilofHitler.

• ThecancerousattackonJewsandotherswasanexampleofnotwardingofftheevil.

• Whenbadbehavior(thevirus)isnotchallengedincongregations,thecongregationbecomesunhealthy.


• GeneralSystemsTheory(FieldTheory)andBowentheoryasanaturalsystemstheoryhavetwodifferentfoundationsandleadtotwodifferentoutcomesinapproachingemotionalprocessinarelationshipsystem.


Bowen:Twovariables:differentiationofselfandlevelofanxiety

• “Onabroadlevel,therearetwomajorvariablesinthetheory.Onehastodowiththelevelofintegrationofselfinaperson.Thishastodowiththedifferentiationofselfconcept.Theothervariableisthelevelofanxiety.Apoorlydifferentiatedpersoncanappear“normal”inananxiety-freefield,butheisthefirsttodevelophisusualsymptomswhentheanxietyincreases.Thosewiththebestlevelsofdifferentiationareamongtheleastreactivetoanxietyandtheleastlikelytodevelopsymptomsinananxietyfield.”

Bowen,p.407


Abasichumanemotionisanxiety.

Anxietyisapatternedresponsivenessatemotional,physiological,andbehaviorallevelsovertimeandacrossgenerations.


Whatisdifferentiationofself?

• Thecapacitytoseethesystemandone’spartinit.• Emotionalflexibilityandobjectivityabouttherelationshipsystem.

• Separationofemotionalandintellectualsystems.• Clearsetofprinciplesbywhichtolive.• Capacitytodefineselfinfaceofsocialdisapproval.


Variationinthelevelofdifferentiation

• Isanaturalprocessbasedonthecapacityofthehumanfamilytoadapttostressorsintheenvironment.

• Overgenerationsfamiliesvaryinthecapacitytoadaptandthevariationispassedoninfamiliesandtoindividualsinsucceedinggenerations.


Anxietyandtheprojectionprocess

• InBowentheory,asymptom(family,congregation,society)isaresultofthelevelofanxietyandthewaythatanxietyishandledinthesystem.

• Projectiononavulnerablepartofthesystemisanoutcomeofwayemotionishandledinthewhole.


Friedman:Self-differentiation

• Definingaselfinrelationtotheproblematicpersoninthesystem.

• Withtheanalogyofthevirus,itistoovercomeandexpeltheinfectionwhileremainingnon-anxious.


Sabotage

• Thoseinthesystemwhoareupagainstonewhoisdifferentiatingwillattemptto“sabotage”thoseefforts.

• Thisconnotesthatanindividualistheproblem,ratherthanasymptominananxioussysteminwhichthe“leader”alsoplaysarole.


Howdothesetwoconceptualframeworksleadtodifferentwaysofapproachingafamilyor

congregation?


TheSmithfamily

8

42 3838

18 15


Bowen

• Thefamilyhasfunctionedovergenerationsfairlywelluntiltheircapacitytomanagestressorswasexceeded.

• Thehusbandisnotthepathogen,butapartofananxiousinteractionalsysteminwhichheisabsorbingtheanxiety.

• Thewife’sreactionstohissobrietyreflectedthelevelofdifferentiationandshiftinganxietythatwasapredictablepartofthefamilychanging.

• Ifthehusbandcanstayoncourseandnotreact,thefamilywillsettledownatabetterfunctionallevel.


Friedman

• Thefatherwasoriginallythepathogen.• Thehomeostasisofthefamilywasdisturbedbythefather’ssobriety.

• Thefamilysoughttosabotagehisefforts.• Thefatherneedstotakeonandconfrontthesabotage.


Bowen:Theroleofthecoach

• Manageselfthoughtfullyasaresourcetoanindividual,family,orsystem.

• Stayoutoftheemotionalfieldofthesystem.• Beawareofthetriangles.• Bearesourcetoresponsiblefunctioningformotivatedindividuals.


Friedman:ParadoxesandReversals

• Friedmantookamoredirectiveapproach,givingassignmentsthatwoulddisturbthehomeostasisofthefamily(congregation).

• Coachpeopleinselfdifferentiationtotakeonthepathogeninacongregationwithanon-anxiouspresenceandwiththegoalofstayingconnected.


Friedman

• Friedman’ssystemideasarebasedonfieldtheorywhichisanaspectofGeneralSystemstheory.It’soriginsareinphysics.

• Selfdifferentiationwasbasedonstandinguptotheproblemsinacongregation(inanon-anxiousanddefinedway).

• Inthemetaphorofthevirus,thevirusinvadesthehostandcanoverwhelmit(theproblematiconescantakeoverthecongregation)andtheleaderneedstohavethenervetotakeiton.


Bowentheory• Bowentheory,basedontheideathatthehumanispartofevolutionaryhistory,isadescriptivetheoryoftheemotionalreciprocityinarelationshipsystem.

• Theoretically,symptomsorproblemsflowfromalackofdifferentiationofselfandthelevelofanxietyinthesystemwhichisprojectedonorabsorbedbyavulnerablemember.

• Aproblemindicatestheinabilityofthesystemtoadapt,notaninvasionofapathogen.

• Differentiationisaboutbecomingaresponsiblememberofasystembyunderstandingone’s partintheprocessandtakingactiononone’sownemotionalfunctioning.


Takeaway

• Friedmanbroughtmanypeopletosystem’sideas.• Hewasbrilliant,engaging,awonderfulwriterandpresenter.• HetookaspectsofBowentheoryandintegratedthemwithhisownideas.

• Thesewereusefultomanyclergy.• Itisnotusefultoconflatethetwotheorists,buttoallowthemeachtheirownideas.

Bowen and Friedman - Amazon S3and+Friedman.pdf · Bowen theory •Bowen theory, based on the idea that the human is part of evolutionary history, is a descriptive theory of the emotional

Documents