[Methods of diagnosis in family interaction: a metatheoretical reference frame]

In order to obtain a systematic structure of family diagnosis a metatheoretical frame of reference is developed in which three levels are distinguished: Family diagnosis should concern the whole system of the family, the individual system members and the relationships between the system members. To classify the different methodological approaches the concept of Cromwell, Olson and Fournier (1984) is used, in which one distinguishes between an objective and a subjective frame of reference and between the outsider and the insider perspective. The possibilities to operationalize functionality versus disfunctionality of family systems or family interactions are discussed.