Dr. Monica Mcgoldrick Chapter Summary

Dr. Monica McGoldrick is a Family Systems expert who has published multiple books on the usefulness of genograms during the treatment of families. She proposes that when a client is put to the task of creating a multigenerational genogram for his family, the therapist can then use multiple questioning techniques that glean further information about them, thereby gaining further details that help fill in the “holes” the clients may not be telling the therapist that would help the therapist uncover the real issues. In this text, McGoldrick intends for readers to understand how a genogram differs from creating a simple family tree, in that it focuses on patterns of relationships, impacts of illnesses, separations, and grief; then gives further

This book was written in 1995, and so it is a bit outdated for the work McGoldrick has done in the area of genograms since, but it is certainly a good start for a reader who knows little about the structure. The central message of this book is that we “are not always aware-whether positive or negative- of the traits we have absorbed from [our] families” (McGoldrick, 53). Oftentimes we can see a negative trait within our family dynamic; for example, Grandpa Woodland was horribly overbearing to even his adult children, yet we do not necessarily recognize we have also “absorbed some of these same mannerisms” (McGoldrick 53). For example, now the daughter is

Her book also includes sections on the roles of gender, religion, birth order, and culture to show the importance these play in shaping family traditions and inherent beliefs over periods of time. On immigration, she says, “When you have access to details of family history, it makes a great difference why the family came, what it left behind, and what dreams or fears it brought with it (McGoldrick, 264). Indeed, traditional roles and strict cultural value sets can have a powerful and lasting influence over family