Family Constellation
Family Constellation is the latest family therapy technique developed
in early 1990’s by the German psychotherapist, Bert Hellinger, through 25
years of healing work. It has
become the most talked-about therapeutic technique amongst psychologists in the
health profession in Europe, and is spreading at a rapid speed in the five
continents.
The
term “system” means an organization or a structure of elements composed
together for certain purposes. Every
person, thing or matter is an element of many systems; and a system can be an
element of a bigger system. A man
is a system composed of many smaller systems in which every cell is a system
itself. At the same time, he can be a husband in a system with his
wife, and at the same time, a member of a certain organization, a citizen of a
city, and a subject of a nation.
Every person must belong to some systems composed of people.
His relationship with other members in a system determines how well he
stays in the system. There are three important factors in this regard.
Negligence or violation of these factors would result in the suffering of
some young and weak members in the system.
Such suffering is called entanglement.
It could be some peculiar and unexplainable thoughts, emotions or
behavior in a person, abnormal relationship with other members of the system, or
some extraordinary phenomena repeatedly occur in his daily life.
1.
Belonging:
Every
member of a system has the right of belonging to that system, and the right must
be recognized by the rest of the members. A
child lost in an abortion or miscarriage still has a place in the system.
If his right of belonging were neglected, a younger child in the family
system would have the signs of entanglement.
Likewise in a company, if the founder or the previous boss is not given
adequate respect by the current management and staff, entanglements in the form
of disgruntled labors, conflicts amongst the management, or poor business
results may occur.
2.
Give
and Take:
There
are both the right and duty amongst members to give and take.
Under general circumstances, the give-and-take between two members should
be balanced. Excess give’s by a
member would create superiority over the other member, and would eventually
damage the relationship. There are
situations that balance cannot be stricken by reciprocation, but through passing
on. Examples are : the life from
parents, knowledge from teachers, and assistance from others during difficult or
dangerous situations.
3.
Social
Orders:
Every
system has its own rules and disciplines. And
there are also rules and disciplines between systems.
Such rules and disciplines make members aware of the consequence of their
behavior, what should be said and done to people inside and outside the system,
and how they should respond to other members’ words and deeds.
Therefore, these rules and disciplines provide members with the feeling
of security in the system.
If
these important factors are neglected, a system would lose balance, and some
young and weak members would be chosen to bear the entanglement thus created.
This may be seen as unfair, but ensuring the system to continue in a
balanced way is the predominant duty of the system, and it does not care about
individual member’s sufferings. Apart
from the signs of entanglement, we can detect the imbalance in a system by
“setting up” a constellation using people on the floor, or objects on a flat
surface. “Set-up” is the first
part of a Systemic Constellation, followed by the process of finding the needed
information, until a resolution can be brought to the case.
Systemic
Constellation may be considered to belong to Phenomenological Psychology.
Emphasis is placed on the person’s subjective feelings and perceptions,
the same as in client-centered therapy.
THE
APPLICATION OF SYSTEMIC CONSTELLATION
When
the technique of Systemic Constellation is applied in family therapy or
psychotherapy, it is called Family Constellation; when it is used to solve
business or personal situations, it is called Organizational Constellation.
Family cases include serious illness, cancer, anorexia, bulimia, mental disorder, unknown fear, parents relationship, lovers relationship, divorce, suicide, abortion, adoption, incest, rape etc.
Organization cases include product development, production, marketing, corporate structure, human resources, corporate planning, re-engineering, business development etc
There are more articles by Bert Hellinger on www.hellinger.com
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