Genograms can focus on a number of hereditary patterns and issues including substance abuse, mental illness, and physical violence, as well as many physical illnesses.It's also likely to help you decide with whom you will share the completed diagram––sometimes the information might be considered upsetting or too sensitive for some family members, so you'll need to judge that depending on the context. The purpose of your genogram will help you to focus on the type of family information you want to collect. Determine your reason for creating a genogram.The two individuals rarely come into contact, but when they are in each other's presence, they argue and are hostile towards one another.Ī genogram is a tool often used in social work for assessing a person's background, exploring the quality of relationship between family members, and explaining behavioral patterns in children, adolescents, and even adults.Steps Deciding What You Want to Learn from a Genogram The spiritual genogram provides a method for clients to gain understanding of the ways in which their religious or spiritual heritage affects present couple or family issues.ĭefines a distant-hostile relationship between two individuals. The spiritual genogram is a tool that helps clients organize their religious and spiritual histories across multiple generations. In the case of a miscarriage, there is a diagonal cross drawn on top of the triangle to indicate death. A triangle is used to represent a pregnancy, a miscarriage or an abortion.

In a standard genogram, there are three different types of children: biological/natural child, adopted child and foster child. The genogram allows the patient to see hereditary patterns of behavior and medical and psychological factors that run through families. The word genogram refers to a diagram illustrating a person's family members, how they are related, and their medical history.

Genograms were later developed and popularized in clinical settings by Monica McGoldrick and Randy Gerson through the publication of a book titled Genograms: Assessment and Intervention in 1985. Murray Bowen invented the concept of the genogram as part of his family systems model in the 1970s. These individuals are always together and depend on each other, yet they are unable to live without arguing. Medical Genogram.May 13, 2021ĭefines a fused-hostile relationship between two individuals. A family genogram is the most popular of the bunch. Here are a few types of genograms that are used frequently:Family Genogram or Gender Genogram. What are the different types of Genograms? It provides a wider perspective on how issues have evolved, leading to a better understanding of the situation. It's important to include all persons that belong to your family system, even if it means you need more paper!Ī genogram plays a vital role in family therapy as it reveals the status of the relationship between each member. Use the mouse to position where you wish to insert the legend in your document.įor example, you might use an asterisk to indicate 'difficulty with anger', or a squiggly line above a gender symbol to indicate 'alcohol addiction'.Īfter creating your basic genogram, you should have a genogram that looks similar to Figure 5, but with more details, such as names and ages, deaths, marriages, divorces, and significant relationships. In the main window of GenoPro, press the keyboard key Y and GenoPro will generate a legend based on the symbols you used in your document. GenoPro has a tool to quickly create a legend of your family tree / genogram. Genogram SymbolsGenogram Symbols.In a genogram, the male is represented by a square on the left and the female by a circle on the right.Standard gender symbols for a genogram.In a standard genogram, there are three different type of children: biological/natural child, adopted child and foster child.

How to make a genogram