Systemic Therapy: What Does It Consist Of?
Systemic therapy studies the phenomena of relationship and communication in groups, analyzing the relationships and the components that emerge from them.
This approach starts with individuals. These are linked together in different collectives that we conceive of as systems. In this way, each group / collective where each person connects is a different system: family, professional, couple, etc.
Indeed, this current starts from the context by taking into account the different environments in which people evolve, the way in which each individual relates to his environment determines his development and personal growth. This is why systemic therapy can be applied to couples, work teams, families and individuals alike.
In the rest of the article, we will discuss how this approach arises and what it consists of. In other words, the principles that govern it.
Origin of systemic therapy
Systemic therapy is a current that is based on the general theory of von Bertalanffy systems. This begins to develop in the second half of the twentieth century. Bertalanffy emphasizes the concept of interaction in his theory. He asserts that a system implies interdependence between the parties or people involved in the relationship. It should be noted that the concept of system starts from the General Theory of Systems.
Thus, the onset of systemic therapy is associated with anthropologist Gregory Bateson and his team at the Hospital Administration of Palo Alto. Bateson has teamed up with other researchers such as Jackson, Haley, and Weakland to analyze the communication system of schizophrenic families.
The double link theory comes from Bateson’s research. The latter has put its grain of sand in the foundations of systemic therapy. In this sense, a double link is a dilemma in terms of communication due to the contradiction between two or more messages. In other words, we send messages that contradict each other.
It is clear that the phenomenon of human communication is one of the objects of analysis of systemic therapy. We must underline the fact that we owe the bases of this current to Paul Watzlawick in his theory of human communication. He addresses issues related to the pragmatics of communication, taking into account the effects that communication has on behavior.
Principles of systemic therapy
The following are basic and relevant aspects of systemic therapy:
The system as a whole
For this current, the system is considered as a whole. Indeed, the whole is more important than the sum of its parts. Thus, systemic therapy emphasizes the properties of the whole that result from the interaction of different elements of the system. The important thing for this approach is therefore the relationship that arises from the interaction of people.
The different systems (family, friends, couple, work colleagues, etc.) interact in a contextual framework. The roles and behaviors of people in these contexts are determined by the unwritten rules of this system and the interaction between its members. Systemics analyzes and pays particular attention to these roles and behaviors.
Multicausal origin
Systemic therapy starts from a circular and multicausal perspective. Therefore, one cannot establish linear markers where there is only one cause. On the other hand, there are several determining causal factors.
Each action and reaction constantly changes the nature of the context. For example, in a family, the members react to the same fact in different ways, modifying the final situation. Thus, it is the combination of all the reactions that can occur.
In this sense, Paul Watzlawick was a pioneer in distinguishing this causality from the facts to explain the possible repetitive tracks of interactions between people. Ultimately, the circular view of people is marked by how the behavior of an individual influences the actions of others and how others influence the behavior of the former.
Communication is a key factor
As we mentioned before, Watzlawick was one of the first to expose systemic therapy by introducing his theory on communication. The latter is considered to be a key factor in the therapeutic process. For systemic therapy, communication is an important point to work on and to analyze.
Each system imposes its rules that the systemic therapist must know little by little in order to intervene on them if they are not appropriate. The way we communicate, according to this stream, determines whether or not the problem to be treated is maintained.
In conclusion, systemic therapy offers another perspective of difficulties and problems, in which the relationship above the individual as the focus of intervention predominates.
From the different studies have emerged different ramifications and schools within systemic therapy, with slight differences. These include: International School of MRI, Structural and Strategic School, Systemic School of Milan, among others.
Our thoughts Systemic therapies have their origins in family therapy, although in reality the family does not have to be the central …
