5 page genogram
vwccspt12
HowtoBuildaGenogram.docx
1
COUC 601
How to Build a Genogram
(Many of the symbols and definitions are adopted from GenoPro.com)
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Although there is general agreement on the basic genogram structure and symbols, there are some variations from one author to another and some in the GenoPro software program on how to depict certain family situations, such as cutoffs, adoptions etc. (Bowen, 1980; Kramer, 1985; McGoldrick, Gerson, & Shellenberger, 1999). The following elements are common to genogram construction. The male is represented by a square and the female by a circle. You may also use a diamond for a pet and the question mark for unknown gender.
Deaths are typically represented by putting an “X” through the symbol. (If you ever do a genogram with a client, ask the client how he/she would like to represent the death since putting an “X” through the symbol without their permission could be traumatizing.)
For one to be called a parent, they would have to have at least 1 of the 3 types of children: biological/natural, foster, or adopted. On the genogram, a triangle is the standard diagrammatic representation of a pregnancy, a miscarriage, or an abortion. While an abortion is represented with a horizontal line on top of the triangle, a diagonal cross in the same position indicates the death of a baby through a miscarriage. As for a still birth, it is displayed the same as its gender, though the gender symbol is two times smaller, while the diagonal cross remains the same size.
The reason is obvious as to why the children on a genogram are placed below the family line, starting from the oldest to the youngest, and from the left hand to right. Take note that these are vitally important rules to remember down the road, as the family system becomes labyrinthine. The GenoPro software, however, does allow variations in this area.
Birth, marriage, divorce, and death dates may be indicated by the initial and year (i.e., b. 89). The ages of the individuals are put in as numbers in the markers. Alcoholism (or other relevant issues) is frequently indicated by filling in the bottom part of the individual’s marker.
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The child links are joined together for multiple births, such as twins, triplets, etc. Identical twins (or triplets, etc.) are displayed with a horizontal line between the siblings. In the example below, the mother had two fraternal twin brothers, two identical twin sisters and triplets, one of which died at birth.
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There are 4 general rules to keep in mind:
1. The female is always at the right of the family and the male is always at the left.
2. Where there is ambiguity, it is recommended to assume a male-female relationship instead of a same sex relationship.
3. It is assumed that a spouse must always be closer to his/her first partner than to subsequent partners (if any).
4. The youngest child is always at the right of the family and the oldest child is always at the left.
Family Relationships
The next genogram component is the family relationship to describe the union of 2 individuals, typically through marriage. Other family relationships are divorce, separation, cohabitation, engagement, etc. Each completed genogram needs a legend to describe the various symbols. This legend should include the emotional relationship and family relationship lines indicated on your genogram.
GenoPro uses this type of indicator for emotional and relationship lines. When there may be a discrepancy between this document and GenoPro, use GenoPro.
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Each type of family relationship is described in the table below:
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This family relationship represents a married couple. There is no special symbol to distinguish a civil marriage and/or a religious marriage. |
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The married couple is separated and started legal procedure for an eventual divorce. If you know a couple is separated but you are not sure about the legal procedure, it is recommended to use the separation in fact symbol. |
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The married couple has divorced. No comments. |
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The marriage was annulled. This is a rare case, but it must be included. |
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The two individuals are in the process of getting married. |
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Same as above except the individuals are living together before getting married. |
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There is a legal paper trail about the cohabitation. The two individuals have written contract about the cohabitation status, involving benefits such as parental responsibility, common ownership, and inheritance. |
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The two individuals no longer live together and are in the process of terminating their cohabitation contract. |
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The cohabitation contract has been terminated. |
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Although there is no legal definition of cohabitation, it generally means to live together as a couple without being married. Use this relationship to define the generic common law spouse. There is no such thing as illegal cohabitation. |
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The generic symbol of two individuals no longer living together. |
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The two individuals lived together until one of the partner died. Same as legal cohabitation and decease, but no cohabitation agreement had been written. |
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A relationship where two individuals live together, but there is no affection towards another. |
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The action of seeing someone or dating. Be aware the terms boyfriend and girlfriend are often used for cohabitation, but not exclusively. |
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The two individuals are no longer dating. This could be called ex-boyfriend or ex-girlfriend. Be aware, the term ex-boyfriend and ex-girlfriend may also be used for cohabitation and separation, but not exclusively. |
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This is the polite term for having a mistress or a one night stand. Select this relation if children are the product of such a relationship. |
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One individual is abusing or has abused the other individual, including date-rape, drug-rape, and wife-rape. This type of relationship is mostly used in therapy or when a child was the product of such relationship. |
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A relationship not specified in the list above or is unknown to the creator of the genogram. Use this symbol to highlight an unusual type of relationship. |
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A blank value is used to describe an unspecified relationship when creating a new family. This is the symbol used to indicate that the user has not yet specified the type of relationship. |
A family always has two parents. Use the appropriate family relationship symbol to describe the status of the family. For instance, a single parent family (single mother or single father) is still a family of two individuals, but one individual left. If a new partner or spouse is replacing one parent, create a new family to describe the relationship of the new couple.
Emotional Relationships
Although the family relationship may describe the emotional bond between the two parents, the emotional relationship component can be used to describe the emotional bond between any two individuals in the genealogy tree.
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Each type of emotional relationship is described in the table below. The legend symbols have been made bigger so you can see them better.
Creating Genograms
The following are questions to consider in creating a genogram. Review your personal history and the people, existing support systems, or events that may have influenced you.
1. Who lives in the household? Where do other family members live?
2. How is each person related?
3. How do other family members view you?
4. What are changes that have occurred in the family?
5. Has anyone else lived with your family? When? Where are they now?
6. Are there any family members who have had a medical or mental illness of any kind? Who are they and how are they related to you? When did the problem(s) begin? What kind of treatment was helpful for them or available to them?
7. Are there any family members who are very close? Friends who are close? Who are they?
8. Which members help out when you need them?
9. How do you get along with each member in your home? In your family?
10. Whom do you see as the strong one? The weak one? The sick one? The bad one? The mad one? The one with all the problems? The dominant one? The submissive one? The successful one? The failure? The warm one, cold one, caring one, distant one, or the selfish one?
11. Has anyone in your family had serious medical problems? Who and what did they have?
12. What roles have you played in your family?
13. How did the family react when a particular family member was born? When a particular family member died?
14. Are there any family members who do not speak to each other or who have ever had a period of not speaking? Are there any who were/are in serious conflict?
15. Are there any family members who are extremely close? Who helps out when needed? In whom do family members confide?
16. What sort of issues occurred between the couples in your family?
17. How does each parent get along with each child? Have any family members had particular problems dealing with their children?
18. Any job changes? Unemployment? How do you like your job? What is the economic situation?
Interpreting Genograms
There are many ways to interpret a genogram. As a rule of thumb, the data must be analyzed for the following:
1. Multi-Generational Issues: Repetitive symptom, relationship, or functioning patterns can be seen across the family and over generations. Thus, you ought to examine the genogram for repeated triangles, coalitions, cut-offs, patterns of conflict, over-and under-functioning, etc.
2. Dates: Dates provide information that helps put events in perspective. For example, coincidence of dates (e.g., death of one family member or anniversary of death occurring at the same time as symptom onset in another, or the age at symptom onset coinciding with the age of problem development of another family member). Dates throw light on the impact of sequential or simultaneous happenings whose relatedness may be otherwise hard to ascertain. For example, if you find out that an individual or family was dealing with several mishaps within a given year, you can see the effect these stresses would have on family members, such as a young baby or an older child leaving home.
3. Change and Life Cycle Transitions: Changes in functioning and relationships that correspond with critical family life events. Of particular interest are untimely life cycle transitions (e.g., births, marriages, or deaths) that occur “off-schedule.”
4. Traumas: Traumas can have a dramatic impact on people. Experiencing such events as abuse; war; natural disasters; etc., their timing, and how people reacted are critical to examine.
5. Gender: Gender beliefs and values do have an influential role in families. They often create complications within the context of cross-cultural marriages, especially when involving members of different gender beliefs. A common example of such a case is if a family has sent clear messages that men are strong and do not show emotions (especially hurtful ones), you may come to understand why a given younger-generation married couple would be struggling to communicate.
6. Secrets: Secrets in a family not only take energy away from a family, but may reveal important information about boundaries and communication patterns in the family system.
7. Losses: The issue of losses is a fundamental factor in genograms. Some of the points to note under this category are: the event of sudden and critical illness, economic hardships, sudden death, disabilities, unanticipated loss or shortage of income, miscarriages, divorces, etc. Even though the impact of such losses varies from person to person, the question is: “To what extent was this event perceived as a loss?” Not all these events are perceived as losses, and the depth of loss also does vary greatly.
Much of the information and materials in this document were taken from the GenoPro website such as the rules, symbols, family relations, emotional relationship pages. Permission was given to do so by the developer of GenoPro to the developer of this document.
GenoPro Software. www.genopro.com [permission to use symbols and other materials from
GenoPro has been granted to the creator of the document]
McGoldrick, M., Gerson, R., & Petry, S. (2008). Genograms: Assessment and intervention
(3rd ed.). New York: W.W. Norton and Company.
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