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Murray Bowen's Family Systems Theory

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Dr. Murray Bowen’s family systems theory “is a concept of human behavior that views the family as an emotional unit and uses systems thinking to describe the complex interactions in the unit. It is the nature of a family that its members are intensely connected emotionally.” (Kerr, 2000.). The concept of this theory explains that the emotional unit is the key factor in the reason family members are interconnected to one another. Because emotion is the driving force to various behaviors, the emotional unit has a strong influence on member’s feelings, actions, and thoughts (Kerr, 2000.). This influence is the foundation that interconnectedness is built upon. Therefore, the emotional unit strongly influences promotion of interdependency between …show more content…

Younger members displayed behavior and displayed emotions are a reflection of issues or situations that the younger member is exposed to or a response to the surrounding or influential environment. Therefore, parenting behavior is a significant force in the caregiver-child relationship and in the child’s quest for selfhood. The two dimensions of parent behavior are the warmth dimension and the control dimension. The warmth dimension-parental responsiveness involves the parent creating a positive emotional environment that is child centered. In this environment, the parent is interested and involved in the child’s activities, listens to the child, accepts the child, and is supportive of the child. (Broderick, 2015). When parents are parent-centered, this promotes a negative emotional environment. Parents that are parent-centered show diminutive responsiveness to the concerns of the child. The control dimension-parental demandingness involves parents imposing discipline, demanding their children to exercise restraint of some of their behaviors, and implement behaviors that are appropriate for their level of maturity. Demanding parents can operate in either child-centered or parent-centered. They also set and implement rules and …show more content…

The emotional element of members promotes Maslow’s hierarchy of needs; which is a motivation theory that views motivation as the driving force within people that motivates members to acquire essential needs for survival (Martin, 2014.). Essential needs include self-fulfillment needs (self-actualization), psychological needs (esteem and love), and basic needs (safety, food, water, shelter). Therefore, the emotional interdependency and interconnectedness are components and edifiers of the attachment component. Interdependency and interconnectedness work hand in hand to strengthen and support the attachment

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