In the complex weave of the human lineage, cognizing family dynamics can be a challenging aspect. To know the intricacies of family links, experts in various fields have devised several tools. These approaches offer valuable insights into the patterns of familial entities.
One such powerful technique is the genogram. It is a simple yet effective visual representation of genealogical contacts. We usually use scorecards to help spectators understand players & their positions in gameplay. Likewise, a genogram helps us grasp family members' roles, actions, and health history. This detailed guide will describe how to make a genogram online using a reliable diagramming tool.
In this article
Part 1. Basics of Genogram Diagrams
Although genograms are family trees but are more formal and comprehensive than a typical family tree. They visualize the ancestry, lineage, and family links across many generations. The details presented in a genogram may include basic information. For example, it contains the names, birth dates, marriage status, medical disease, or psychological disorder. It also displays behavioral information like sexual orientation.
Components of a Genogram
A genogram usually comprises symbols, textual information, and generational patterns. The symbols signify various family members, including siblings, parents, or grandparents. Specific shapes denote genders, and lines link the family members to show relations.
Textual information may cover crucial details about each family member. Such details involve their names, birth and death dates, marriage status, etc. The lineage patterns decode the social or emotional dynamics across various generations. These lineage factors affect family links.
Part 2. How to Make a Genogram
How to Make a Genogram in General
Step 1: Establish the Objective
Begin by stating the objective for creating a genogram. Are you investigating medical history-psychological or relational and social? This will assist in identifying the type of information that has to be compiled.
Step 2: Gather the Family’s Database
Collect secondary data related to family members, including their names, birth and death dates, the dating or marriage, divorces, if any. Also, include any mental or physical illness or abnormality in the family. As a rule, try to gather at least three generations, as it allows you to cover the general information.
Step 3: Genogram Drawing
Starting with the oldest generation at the top of the hierarchy, move on to the other generations. Draw circles around actual people, draw lines to show their relationships, and include some pertinent information.
Step 4: Relationship Between Family Members
Join the family members with lines and put the signs like ‘= ‘ for marriage, ‘// ‘ for divorce, ‘. . ‘ for cohabitation. These additional symbols should be included before the main symbols to express definite circumstances or conditions.
Step 5: Add Details
When drawing the symbols, use textual information, such as names and dates. This gives further understanding and meaning to its category in your genogram.
Step 6: Review & Save
Assess whether the elements in your genogram are accurate and comprehensive. You can export your genogram by clicking the export icon to choose your preferred format.
Method to Make a Genogram Online
EdrawMax is an all-in-one platform for constructing your genograms. The tool offers several built-in features to update your genogram creation. It has a ready-to-use symbols library of all types to create an inclusive family diagram.
Another aspect that EdrawMax surpasses is the availability of both the application and the online version. This feature lets you choose which medium you want to opt for a genogram.
Further, its drag-and-drop feature makes it super easy to portray your familial bonds. You can also enjoy its auto-adjustment option to align your shapes. The tool offers a massive template community to kick-start your genogram creation. Thus, you can avoid the starting-from-scratch issue.
Steps To Make a Family Genogram With EdrawMax
A manual genogram creation may take several hours. Yet, the intuitive user interface of EdrawMax simplifies the diagram creation process. The drag-and-drop option allows even a beginner user to craft intuitive genograms in a few minutes. Here is the detailed process on how to create a genogram online using EdrawMax:
Step1
Start by analyzing the scope of your intended genogram. Determine whether you are making it for medical, psychological, or social purposes.
Step2
Decide the lineage or number of generations you want to add to your genogram. For example, if you are making a genogram for medical diagnosis, you can select up to 3 or 4 generations.
Step3
Collect data about your family links. You can search for age, diseases, actions, bloodline, marriages, divorces, or other events.
Step4
The following step is to select a certified diagramming tool. Using EdrawMax, you can assemble your gathered information in visual form. Therefore, we will use EdrawMax Online to construct our genogram.
Step5
Sign up on EdrawMax Online to access its interface.
Step6
Click the "New" option in the left panel and choose the "Genogram" tab from the main widget.
Step7
Drag and drop all the basic symbols from the Symbols Library on the left. Make a structure of your genogram by adding details to your symbols.
Step8
Now link up all the members. Sketch relationship symbols between them.
Step9
Complete your genogram by adding extra details.
Step10
Save your genogram in your preferred format. For this, navigate to the "Export" icon at the top.
Part 3. Genogram Symbols Library on EdrawMax
Genograms can describe complex details easily and visually. Yet, it is crucial to know their symbolism. To familiarize its basics and notations, we have presented a few templates. These symbol toolkits contain fundamental genogram symbols:
Legend-Winchester Genogram Symbols
A genogram consists of various basic and advanced symbols to depict different conditions. In the above symbols library template, Legend-Winchester genogram symbols are shown. Squares signify males, whereas circles mean females.
A crossed square means a dead male. Conversely, a crossed circle represents a deceased female. The lines or arrows display the links among the family members. It shows whether they are married, engaged, divorced, separated, or friends.
Basic Genogram Symbols
In a genogram, the gender of family members is indicated by the common symbol used. More, they also tell us about the sexual orientations and life events of different family members. For example, a square with an inverted triangle represents a gay. In contrast, a circle with an inverted triangle denotes a lesbian female. Similarly, the squares and circles with dotted inverted triangles represent bisexual individuals.
You can also depict immigration, multicultural variance, and pregnancy using these diagrams.
Psychological Behavior Genogram Symbols
Psychiatrists use genograms to know family details and identify patterns of issues. They also explore the impact of family history on current issues through these visuals. It helps therapists understand how family affairs influence the emotional well-being of individual family members.
Also, genograms document family medical histories. This information is crucial in diagnosing and managing genetic conditions. Such diagrams also tell us about the illnesses having a hereditary factor. The above genogram symbol library pertains to psychological and physical disorders due to gene transfer.
Family Relations Genogram Symbols
It is equally important to visualize the links and affinities among different family members. You need to know the actual links to construct a comprehensive family tree. For example, the "married" symbol in a genogram is represented by a horizontal line. This line connects a male and female symbol. Similarly, we denote the "engaged" symbol as two persons connected by a dashed line.
In contrast, the "divorced" symbol contains two small diagonal lines crossing the horizontal line. Like the divorced symbol, the "separated" symbol has two small diagonal lines crossing the horizontal line. In contrast, the "cohabiting" symbol contains a dotted line similar to the married symbol but without the marriage symbol.
Part 4. Genogram Templates on EdrawMax
A full-fledged family genogram may assist you in comprehending the entire mechanism of how a genogram operates. For this reason, we have compiled a few valuable genogram templates for your insights:
Family Genogram Template With Key Symbols
The above genogram contains two families. One involves the patient's father, and the other is his mother. Both the paternal grandfather and grandmother of the patient were separated and dead. The paternal grandmother had cancer. In contrast, maternal grandparents are alive. Yet, they have asthma and chronic kidney diseases.
The parents and siblings of the patients are alive & healthy. This template represents a family genogram representing basic links and attributes.
Conflict Family Genogram Template
Genograms usually include specific notes about conflicts, disparities, or significant events. It is because all these factors affect family relations. For example, remarriages and stepfamilies can depict the trials & adjustments that may arise from merging families.
The above genogram shows a family that has several diverse situations. The family experiences conflicts, abuse, divorce, love, friendship, and more. A couple which is happily married engenders a son and daughter. The daughter is married and has further two daughters. The daughters are in love with some guys. The son has two daughters and a son who is in love with a girl, a close friend of his sister's son-in-law.
Genogram Template Showing Familial Relations
Genograms can portray family disputes and other relative affairs. It is because they represent the complexities & dynamics within a family system. Various elements in the genogram can shed light on conflicts, tensions, and disputes. Counselors can gain valuable insights into family disputes by probing patterns within the genogram. They also check the emotional dynamics and unsettled conflicts.
You can use this genogram template as a perfect example of a social genogram. This sample is best for depicting disputes among different family members. For example, some members face sexual abuse, whereas some are having a cut-off with their young. You can also observe the love affair between the members of these two different families.
Tips for Making Genograms
- Clarify the purpose: Decide what you will look at in your genogram, including their medical history, psychological qualities, or social factors. This leaves data collection and presentation with a clear purpose.
- Gather comprehensive data: Gather all the data about family members and their children, siblings, parents, and closest relatives; their first names; birth and death dates, if any; and any medical or psychological information about the family members.
- Use standard symbols: It is recommended to stick to conventional icons where possible; for males, use squares, and for females, use circles. When symbols are used repeatedly, they help the learner in comprehension.
- Organize by generations: Arrange family members for future generations, particularly each generation. This assists in explaining the composition of the family and the other relationships in the family unit, if any.
- Connect members appropriately: Standard lines should also be utilized wherever relationships like marriage, divorce, and cohabitation exist. Proper networks make the genogram to be as accurate as possible.
- Include annotations: Use names, labels, and other attributes to prevent vagueness. Annotating adds depth to the information contained in the genogram.
- Customize layout thoughtfully: The customization features allow users to make enhancements in clarity and aesthetics. The genogram should be well structured to make it easier to visit and comprehend.
- Verify details: Make sure you include all joints and all facts and figures you convey. When designing a genogram, it is crucial to be as precise as possible in message and image.
- Seek input from others: Sharing your genogram with other family members and experts is recommended to receive responses. It allows for the collection of more accurate and complete information in cooperation.
Conclusion
A genogram is a powerful tool for gaining deep insights into the complex web of ancestry and family linkage. With its visual depiction of lineages, the genogram offers an ample overview of a family's history. The diagram uses symbols and lines to depict different aspects of family life. Due to these perks, physicians use genograms to understand family dynamics.
This article provides some useful genogram templates and their symbol indicators. Let yourself uncover the actual usage of these diagrams.
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