Genogram Diagram Templates

Are you looking for some samples of Genogram Diagrams to understand and design your own? Here are 10 Free Genogram Diagram Templates (MS Word) to help you out quickly.

If you use social media, it’s possible that you have heard of a family tree or have seen it on someone’s account. This family tree portrays different generations in a family along with the relations of each family member with each other. It is a very common diagram but there are some limitations to it as it can only show relations of family members in regards to multiple generations. If you need a more brief kind of family tree that also shows medical history, heredity problems, genetic disorders, or signs of physical abuse, a Genogram diagram is created. This diagram can briefly show different types of information including marriages, divorces, separations, and medical conditions i.e. heart attacks, obesity, and high blood pressure along with more complex details i.e. sexual assault and physical abuse.

Free Genogram Diagram Templates:

Guidelines for creating a Genogram Diagram:

Understand the Basics of Genogram:

If you take a look at a Genogram diagram, it might appear complicated to you and you may have trouble getting the idea that anyone can draw this diagram but it’s true. There are some basic details of a Genogram diagram that you need to understand and then it would be a lot easier for you to draw one. The first thing would be to take a look at multiple samples so you understand how everything works. The next step would be to understand legends or symbols that are used in the diagram as different shapes of lines and boxes would indicate something different. For instance, a blue line leading to the name of a child would indicate he was adopted while a green line suggests that he was a foster kid.

Choose how you want to draw the diagram:

There are basically two methods for drawing a Genogram diagram; by hand or in a software program. When you want to draw the diagram by hand, its absolutely crucial to understand all the symbols because a wrong symbol can lead to completely different or complex relations. On the other hand, there are multiple computer programs that allow you to draw Genogram diagrams. You just need to put data in the program, select a specific design and the diagram will be generated automatically. Some of these programs are free but they can only perform basic functions while some cost money they have a complete set of tools that you might need at any stage of drawing.

Select a family with a number of generations:

The next part in the process of drawing a Genogram diagram would be to select how many generations of a family you want to include in the diagram. For instance, if it’s your own family, you can check how far in the past you can go to get the family history and if it would be possible for you to get information about your great-grandparents. Once a number of generations is decided, it’s time to choose the family whose details would be included in the diagram. This can be your own family, a friend’s family or just a client who is seeking professional help for drawing the diagram.

Conduct interviews with family members:

As soon as a specific family is selected, here comes the actual work. This is the last and most important part of drawing a Genogram diagram because, at this stage, you would need to get information about each family member, conduct interviews with relatives, and try to find out as many details as possible. Keep in mind that whatever you find out during these interviews should be kept confidential and you shouldn’t share it with anyone else. Also, there might be some incidents that are portrayed differently by each family member, and in this situation, you can either conduct further interviews or just decide in your mind about which story is true.

Practical Applications of Genogram Diagram:

Perhaps the most common use of a Genogram diagram is for individuals who want to understand their family history. Some might say that a family tree can also convey the same information that is presented in a Genogram diagram but there are multiple factors involved in a Genogram chart that are not available in family tree diagrams. With a Genogram diagram, an individual can also see similar patterns in the family history along with medical conditions that might be heredity. This can help individuals understand family trends in a greater way.

Doctors and other medical workers i.e. physical therapists or nurses use Genogram diagrams to understand a patient’s family history for proper diagnosis and genetic disorder. This diagram can help doctors by providing the relevant data including diseases, sources of genetic disorders,s and other patterns that can lead to understanding a medical condition in a better way. A patient’s medical file could only record his own medical conditions and previous treatments but a Genogram diagram can literally put light on any family member’s medical history who is enlisted in the diagram.

Although people have trouble accepting that there might be something wrong with their mind or psychology it’s a fact that what we see our parents do in our childhood can greatly affect our adulthood behavior. A Genogram diagram shows specific problems with family members including sexual assault and physical abuse. This provides better help to therapists who are treating a patient but don’t know what is causing the psychological problem of the patient. By looking at the diagram, the therapist will be able to understand that the patient as a child suffered from physical abuse from his parent’s separation also played a vital role in the mental disorder.

A marriage where husband and wife never fight is a myth because when two people become part of each other’s lives, they are supposed to have differences which can lead to fights and disagreements with each other. When couples go to marriage counseling, the counselor always tries to find patterns of similar behavior in the family history of both partners. A Genogram diagram can help the counselor and spouses to understand what’s causing the problem and how to address it effectively.