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Holon in Family Systems Theory

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  • First Online:
Encyclopedia of Couple and Family Therapy

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Name of Concept

Holon in Family Systems Theory

Synonyms

Subsystem in family systems theory

Introduction

The term holon refers to a system that demonstrates both the independent characteristics of wholes and the dependent characteristics of parts (Koestler 1970). According to family systems theory, there are several interconnected systems that exist within the family system (Cox and Paley 1997; Fromme 2011), and family is a part of larger systems including extended family and community (Gehart 2018; Minuchin and Fishman 1981). A holon refers to such a subsystem that exists within a larger family system (Minuchin and Fishman 1981; Reuben and Shaw 2016; Shaw et al. 2004).

Theoretical Context for Concept

Theoretically, families engage in processes of self-organization and self-stabilization (Cox and Paley 1997). The process of self-stabilization (or self-correction) refers to the workings of feedback mechanisms that compensate for changes in components of the system and thus help in...

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References

  • Cox, M. J., & Paley, B. (1997). Families as systems. Annual Review of Psychology, 48(1), 243–267.

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  • Fromme, D. K. (2011). Family systems and couples approaches. In Systems of psychotherapy. New York: Springer.

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  • Gehart, D. R. (2018). Mastering competencies in family therapy: A practical approach to theories and clinical case documentation. Boston, MA: Cengage Learning.

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  • Koestler, A. (1970). Beyond atomism and holism – The concept of the Holon. Perspectives in Biology and Medicine, 13(2), 131–154 The Johns Hopkins University Press.

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  • Minuchin, S., & Fishman, H. C. (1981). Family therapy techniques. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

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  • Reuben, J. D., & Shaw, D. S. (2016). Parental depression and the development of coercion in early childhood. In The oxford handbook of coercive relationship dynamics (p. 72). Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press.

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  • Shaw, D. S., Criss, M. M., Schonberg, M. A., & Beck, J. E. (2004). The development of family hierarchies and their relation to children’s conduct problems. Development and Psychopathology, 16(3), 483–500.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Marriage and Family Therapy Program, Human Development and Family Studies, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA

    Natasha Seiter, Amy D. Smith & Kelley Quirk

Authors
  1. Natasha Seiter
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  2. Amy D. Smith
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  3. Kelley Quirk
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Natasha Seiter .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. The Family Institute at Northwestern, Evanston, IL, USA

    Jay Lebow

  2. The Family Institute at Northwestern, Evanston, IL, USA

    Anthony Chambers

  3. The Family Institute at Northwestern, Evanston, IL, USA

    Douglas C. Breunlin

Section Editor information

  1. Department of Family Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA

    David Kearns Ph.D.

  2. The Family Institute at Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA

    Bahareh Sahebi Psy.D., AMFT

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Seiter, N., Smith, A.D., Quirk, K. (2018). Holon in Family Systems Theory. In: Lebow, J., Chambers, A., Breunlin, D. (eds) Encyclopedia of Couple and Family Therapy. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-15877-8_281-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-15877-8_281-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-15877-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-15877-8

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