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Genogram

A Genogram is a visual tool that maps family structures and emotional processes across generations, helping individuals understand familial relationships, values, and patterns. It involves constructing a detailed family tree that includes demographic information, personality traits, and significant events for at least three generations. The Genogram serves as both an assessment and intervention tool for personal healing and understanding of family dynamics.

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7 views

Genogram

A Genogram is a visual tool that maps family structures and emotional processes across generations, helping individuals understand familial relationships, values, and patterns. It involves constructing a detailed family tree that includes demographic information, personality traits, and significant events for at least three generations. The Genogram serves as both an assessment and intervention tool for personal healing and understanding of family dynamics.

Uploaded by

binuscariasdb
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Genogram

What is a Genogram?

The Genogram is a tool for exploring yourself within the context of your family’s
multigenerational story. It is a map that provides a graphic picture of family structure and
emotional processes over time, recording information about family members and their
relationships over at least three generations. It is an emotional family tree showing how families
transmit values, roles, expectations and general attitudes from generation to generation. It is also
an assessment tool for identifying relationship patterns and problems, resources and strengths. It
is also an intervention for healing that enables you to have more compassionate view of the
present.

Constructing a Genogram

You are the index person of your genogram. Using the standard genogram symbols outline your
immediate family, parents and siblings. Draw a double circle if you are female or Double Square
if you are male on your circle/square to represent yourself as the index person.

Proceed to draw your extended family, including at least two generations above you. (your
parents’ immediate families and your grandparents immediate families)If you are married, or are
in another type of committed relationship, or have been married, include the immediate family,
parents and siblings of your spouse/partner. Include any children you have. If your children have
children, draw them in also together with your children’s spouses/partners.

The chart of genogram symbols also includes symbols to represent interactional relationship
patterns (eg. Close, hostile, cut off). Use these to describe the relationships that you believe are
significant or relevant to your situation. For example if you see yourself as been non-
confrontational person, which relationships between, or among which people (including or not
including yourself) may have contributed to this tendency of yours? But avoid cluttering up the
genogram drawing: symbolise only the one or two more important relationships.

Place notes on the genogram near the relevant persons and generations to help describe them and
narrate the family story. The details to include are demographic information as well as
personality traits. Near each significant person, write three adjectives to describe him or her.
Remember to put information about strengths and resiliencies,(eg. self-made man) not just on
dysfunctional behaviours. You should also put information about significant events (eg. Cause
of death, migrations, career shifts). Try to focus on what is relevant to the particular issues you
are working on at the moment.

Information to include in the genogram

 Age of living family members If family member is deceased include Age at the time of
death Date of death and Reason for death
 Current location of family members Professions / occupations. Unemployment
 Educational level/ Ethnic/cultural background or influence/Religion or religious change
 Military service/ Serious illness and medical problems (physical and mental, including
attempted suicides, obesity, asthma, diabetes, heart conditions etc.)
 Addictions (substance, behavioural)Family problems (chronic conflict, abuse, acting out,
trouble with the law)
 Roles played by family members (victim, passive, dormant, domineering, perfectionist,
in charge, black sheep, hero etc)
 Quality of relationships (very close, distant, conflictual, cut off – give date of cut off if
possible

Basic Genogram Rules and Symbols


 The oldest child is always at the left his family, the youngest child is always at the right
his family.
 The male is noted by a square and the female by a circle. A family is shown by an
horizontal line connecting the two.
 The children are placed below the family line from the oldest to the youngest, left to
right. Although this may sound obvious, it will be very important to remember these
rules when the situation becomes a bit more complex.
 The male parent is always at the left of the family and the female parent is always at
the right of the family.
 In the case of ambiguity, assume a male-female relationship, rather than male-male or
female-female relationship.
 A spouse must always be closer to his/her first partner, then the second partner (if
any), third partner, and so on...

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