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Integrating self and system: an empty intersection?
1Psychiatry Department, Kaiser-Permanente, Hayward CA 94545, USA.
Family Process
|March 1, 1995
Summary
Synthesizing therapies requires understanding the concept of "self." A fluid, dimensionless self perspective can resolve therapeutic challenges by integrating individuals and systems.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Family Therapy
- Philosophy of Mind
Background:
- Individual therapies often view the self as a stable internal entity, potentially causing issues in treatment.
- Ecosystemic approaches offer fluid, constructivist perspectives but can still separate subject and object.
- Reconciling these views is crucial for effective therapeutic synthesis.
Observation:
- The assumption of a fixed, internal self can hinder the integration of individual and family therapy.
- Ecosystemic models, while more fluid, may maintain a subject-object duality.
- Therapeutic synthesis requires addressing these underlying epistemological differences.
Findings:
- A therapeutic approach that conceptualizes the self without fixed characteristics can overcome integration challenges.
- This perspective creates a unified space for individuals, families, and therapists.
- It resolves the subject-object separation inherent in some ecosystemic models.
Implications:
- This dimensionless self concept can enhance the efficacy of integrated therapeutic modalities.
- It offers a novel framework for understanding self-organization in systemic contexts.
- Facilitates a more cohesive therapeutic alliance by dissolving perceived boundaries.