A genogram is a graphic diagram that represents a person's family structure across a minimum of three generations, using standardized symbols based on the work of Monica McGoldrick. Unlike a traditional family tree —which only records descent—, the genogram incorporates relevant clinical information: illnesses, emotional bonds, traumatic events, relational dynamics.
The canonical convention comes from the book Genograms: Assessment and Treatment (4th edition, W.W. Norton, 2020) by McGoldrick, Gerson, and Petry. It is the standard used in clinical psychology, family therapy, family medicine, and social work worldwide. Professional software like GenoPro implements it faithfully to the standard.
In Family Constellations, the genogram serves as a preliminary skeleton for the session: the client or the constellator draws the visible system to then explore the invisible dynamics. It is important to distinguish: the genogram is McGoldrick (scientific, closed standard); Constellations are Hellinger (they do not have their own closed graphic system, they use the genogram as a base + systemic reading on top).
For the Constelando website, the minimum three-generation genogram is the most powerful visual tool to show systemic dynamics: an abortion that retains its ordinal place, previous partners who belong, exclusions that are not erased.
Clinical example
Before a session, a client draws her genogram: three generations, symbols for each member, marriage and separation lines. In doing so, she discovers something she had never articulated: her mother was the fourth child, not the third —there was an abortion between the second and her—. That data changes the complete systemic reading.
Illustrative case, anonymized and composed from frequent patterns in Family Constellation sessions.
Bibliography
- Genograms: Assessment and Treatment — Monica McGoldrick, Randy Gerson, Sueli Petry. W.W. Norton, 4th ed., 2020.
- Oh, My Ancestors — Anne Ancelin Schützenberger. Taurus, 2008.
These books are in the reference library that nurtures Constelando el Origen.
Site articles that address this topic
Related terms
Basic Genogram Symbols
Empty square (living male), empty circle (living female), rhombus (non-binary / unknown). X inside the symbol indicates deceased. Universal McGoldrick convention.
See recordSibling line and birth order
Horizontal line from which children hang in birth order, from oldest (left) to youngest (right). All siblings—living, dead, unborn—occupy their ordinal place.
See recordOrdinal place of the lost child (Hellinger's rule)
In the systemic system, a deceased sibling—including abortions and premature deaths—retains their ordinal place. If there was an abortion before the first living child, the first living child is "the second."
See recordFamily Atlas
An expanded visual map of the family system that includes a standard genogram + systemic readings + emotional data + transgenerational events in a single visual piece.
See recordA session that names what hurts
If you recognize this dynamic in your own history, a Family Constellation can reveal where it comes from and what movement can bring order to it. Daniela respectfully accompanies each case.
Sessions in Spanish only