Family Systems in Motion: When One Change Shifts Everything

Written by [Haythem Lafhaj]

In family therapy, we often hear clients say things like “If only they would change...” But what Murray Bowen’s family systems theory reveals is that even small shifts in one person can ripple through an entire family. No one lives in a vacuum—especially not in a family.

Bowenian Family Therapy invites us to view families as emotional systems. Each member’s behavior is shaped by invisible but powerful patterns of interaction, often inherited across generations. This lens helps us move beyond surface behaviors and start asking deeper, systemic questions: What anxiety is being passed around? Who’s absorbing it? And how does change in one person affect the emotional balance of the whole?

The principle of homeostasis is key here. Families, like all systems, strive for stability—even if that stability is uncomfortable or unhealthy. So when one member begins to differentiate (i.e., manage their emotions without being emotionally fused to others), the system reacts. Sometimes with resistance. Sometimes with surprising openness.

One example: a client begins setting new boundaries with a parent who over-functions in their life. The initial response might be guilt trips or emotional withdrawal. But over time, the client’s clarity invites a shift in the system—less reactivity, more autonomy, and new forms of connection.

The therapist’s role is to stay outside the emotional swirl—not to “fix” the family, but to guide insight. This includes helping clients notice triangles, reduce emotional reactivity, and choose intentional responses over automatic ones. As Kerr & Bowen (1988) describe, this is the heart of healthy functioning in a system.

For PLMFTs, this approach is both practical and profound. It reminds us that we don’t need to change everyone to change everything. Sometimes, the most therapeutic act is helping one person show up differently—and watching the ripple take care of the rest.

References:
Bowen, M. (1978). Family Therapy in Clinical Practice. Jason Aronson.
Kerr, M. E., & Bowen, M. (1988). Family Evaluation. W. W. Norton & Company.
Doherty, W. J. (2022). The Ethical Lives of Clients: Transcending Self-Interest in Psychotherapy.