Description Of My Family Through The Family Systems Theory's Lens

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Description of my Family through the Family Systems Theory’s Lens
Developed by Dr. Murray Bowen, family systems theory (FST) postulates that people are better understood as part of their respective families rather than in isolation. The theory conceptualizes a family as a single emotional unit. A family is deemed as a system of interdependent and interconnected individuals, each of whom could be understood as an integral part of his or her family. One of the theory’s fundamental tenet postulates that a family system (FS) organizes itself to conduct day-to-day tasks and challenges in life, and adjust in accordance to its members’ developmental needs. In this essay, I provide a succinct description of my own family from the perspective of the FST.
As aforementioned, a FS organizes itself in performing daily tasks and challenges while adjusting to its members’ developmental needs. This fundamental tenet is centered on the construct of holism. From the FS approach perspective, it is important to conceptualize a FS as a whole in order to have a deep insight into it. Just like other nuclear families, my family comprises of my father, mother, and two children; my younger brother and me. However, the rules with which we interacted with each other coupled with our collective history differentiates us from other families. “Whole” does not combine the parts, but rather differentiates them (McGarry 501). As an Asian-American who grew up in Hong Kong with supportive parents, I can attest that my family was unique from others. An accident that my younger brother was involved in two years ago is among the events that would be relevant or emblematic with regard to wholeness. With regard to such accident, a drunk driver hit my brother, resulting in the shift of my family’s dynamics. Prior to the accident, my parents were not even in love, though they provided for us financially. While growing up, they often argued with each other a lot. However, the problem rekindled their love for each other as they united to solve it.
The FST consists of a number of concepts, each of which is critical in describing families. Particularly, hierarchy as one of its concepts provides a description regarding the manner in which a family organizes itself into several smaller subsystems or units that constitute the FS as a whole. Greene (173) argues that the organization of a family is closely related to both its working order and structure. Organization is brought about by repetitive communication within a given family as well as with its environment. Such exchanges result in the differentiation of roles and the creation of hierarchies and subsystems (Greene 173). Consistent with this argument, my family was characterized by constant quarrels between my mother and father. Consequently, the quarrels resulted in the creation of sibling and parental subsystems within the family itself. I am more connected to my younger...