Books & Articles

Books & Resources on Bowen Family Systems Theory

The Murray Bowen Archives Project also has a wealth of material available, much of it is free. You will find it here: Murray Bowen Archives

Bowen, Murray. Family Therapy in Clinical Practice. New York. Jason Aronson, Inc. 1978.
Gilbert, Roberta M. Eight concepts of Bowen Theory. Leading Systems Press; 2006
Kerr, Michael, E. & Bowen, Murray. Family Evaluation: The Role of Family as an Emotional Unit That Governs Individual Behavior and Development. New York. W.W. Norton & Co., 1988.
Kerr, Michael, E. Bowen Theory’s Secrets: Revealing the Hidden Life of Families, W.W. Norton & Co., 2019.
Papero, Daniel V. Bowen Family Systems Theory. Allyn and Bacon, Needham Heights, Mass. 1990.

Brown, Jenny. Growing Yourself Up: How to bring your best to all of life’s relationships. Exisle Publishing, 2012.
Gilbert, Roberta, M. Extraordinary Relationships: A New Way of Thinking About Human Interactions. Minneapolis. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 1992.
Gilbert, Roberta M. Connecting with Our Children. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Toronto, 1999.
Lerner, Harriet. The Dance of Connection: How to Talk to Someone When You’re Mad, Hurt, Scared, Frustrated, Insulted, Betrayed, or Desperate. HarperCollins Publishers, 2001.
Richardson, Ronald W. Family Ties That Bind: A Self-Help Guide to Change through Family of Origin Therapy. Vancouver, Self-Council Press, 1984.
Schnarch, David. Passionate Marriage: Love, Sex, and Intimacy in Emotionally Committed Relationships. Owl Books (NY); Reprint edition, May 1, 1998.
Kathleen Smith, Everything Isn’t Terrible: https://shorturl.at/uxl9l
Kathleen Smith, True To You: https://shorturl.at/5qyUT

Boyd, Clarence. Committment to Principles. A selection of letters written by Murray Bowen to clients and colleagues. Free at: Boyd Letters
Bregman, Ona Cohn and White, Charles (Eds.). Bringing Systems Thinking to Life: Expanding the Horizons for Bowen Family Systems Theory. Routledge, 2010.
Daniel Papero, Randall Frost, Laura Havstad and Robert Noone. Natural Systems Thinking and the Human Family. Systems 2018, 6(2), 19; https://doi.org/10.3390/systems6020019 – 01
Richardson, Ronald W. Couples in Conflict; A Family Systems Approach to Marriage Counseling. Fortress Press, 2010.
Titelman, Peter, editor. Clinical Applications of Bowen Family Systems Theory. The Hawthorn Press, 1990
Titelman, Peter, editor. Emotional Cutoff: Bowen Family Systems Perspectives. The Haworth Clinical Practice Press, An Imprint of the Haworth Press Inc., New York, 2003
Titelman, Peter, editor. Triangles: Bowen Family Systems Theory Perspectives. The Hawthorn Press, 2007.
Toman, Walter. Family Constellation, Its Effects on Personality and Social Behavior. Springer Publishing Co., New York,1961

Riley, Ruth & Wiseman, Kathleen Klaus. Understanding Organizations: Application of Bowen Family Systems Theory. Washington, DC. The Georgetown Family Centre, 1982.
Richardson, Lois & Richardson, Ronald W. Birth Order and You: How Your Sex and Position in the Family Affects your Personality and Relationships. Vancouver, Self Council Press, 1990.

Friedman, Edwin H. Generation to Generation: Family Process in Church and Synagogue. New York. The Guildford Press, 1985.
Richardson, Ronald W. Creating A Healthier Church: Family Systems Theory, Leadership and Congregational Life. Fortress Press, Minneapolis, 1996.
Richardson, Ronald W. Becoming A Healthier Pastor: Family Systems Theory and the Pastor’s Own Family. Augsburg Fortress Publishers, 2004.
Richardson, Ronald W. Polarization and the Healthier Church: Applying Bowen Family Systems Theory to Conflict and Change in Society and Congregational Life. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2012.