One Family's Story: A Primer on Bowen Theory

by Michael E. Kerr, Ruth Riley Sagar (Editor)

One Family's Story offers an introduction to the eight concepts of Bowen family systems theory, which is a theory of human behavior that views the family as an emotional unit and uses systems thinking to describe the interactions in the unit. Those concepts are Triangles, Differentiation of Self, Nuclear Family Emotional System, Family Projection Process, Multigenerational Transmission Process, Emotional Cutoff, Sibling Position, and Societal Emotional Process. In One Family's Story, author Michael E. Kerr, MD uses a fictional family to illustrate the eight interlocking concepts Dr. Murray Bowen developed to describe these complex interactions.

Genres: Psychology, Nonfiction

43 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

Reviews

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good introduction to family systems.

[Fran · Rating 1 out of 5]

I found the analysis dated and highly gendered. The basic concepts are useful, but the illustrating examples are highly stereotypical around gender roles and fail to take issues of race and class into consideration.

[Christina · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a brief primer and quite easy to read, but because the same family was used for every example it became a bit confusing.

Also, when generational interactions and birth order are introduced into family dynamics, the actual predicting factors for any of Bowen’s theories seems shaky. It seems like a crap-shoot as to how our parents interact with us and how we turn out and learn to cope and interact among our family members and with others.

This primer gave examples of dysfunction but no real solutions, other than for “people to examine their own contributions to societal regression and to work on themselves rather than focus on improving the future generation.” Work on themselves how, exactly?

[Marco · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a booklet which was made into a little book. It uses all of Bowen's concepts having one family as an example.
I seriously can't seem to get enough of Kerr's writings on Bowen theory. It's so concise and makes so much sense it's unsettling.

Bowen Theory's Secrets: Revealing the Hidden Life of Families here I come.

[C. · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good brief intro

This is a short booklet but will acquaint the reader with the core concepts of Bowen Theory. I found it helpful but had to rely on some background knowledge of the subject matter for a deeper understanding.

[Chesna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read for continuing ed. Very quick, more like a pamphlet, but gives a quick overview of the major elements of the theory, set within a story about four generations of a family. An easy and informative read.

[Christine Yim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy to read but beneficial to us all for a lifetime.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really helpful starter pack for family systems.

[Jeff Coppley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy primer on Bowen theory

A solid readable intro to BFST. I recommend this for a first step or review. The family story is a good means for communicating the theory.

[Sara Gorman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very quick read that outlines the basics of Bowen Theory. It is a great introduction to the theory and would best be helpful to read before reading any other books that may be in depth.

[Sara Hill · Rating 5 out of 5]

The go-to book I would recommend to get a basis for understanding family systems theory.

[Meredith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Is as titled

A solid primer on family systems theory, Covers how triangles happen, but stops prior to how to break the pattern.

[Barbara Nunes · Rating 5 out of 5]

stay in your own lane for the good of all😂

Fixing oneself is smarter than blaming others when it all boils down. Fascinating how this works across generations. Good grief.

[Michele · Rating 5 out of 5]

Una manera mas práctica de entender la teoría Transgeneracional de Murray Bowen. Lo recomiendo para aquellas personas que se inician en su interés por conocer la teoría de Bowen.

[David Mills · Rating 5 out of 5]

You can read the book in twenty minutes and then reflect for a lifetime on how well it sums up human behavior.