ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the importance of the interdependent, complementary roles of theory and methods in the research process. In the search for knowledge about human behavior and the human family, Joanne Bowen family systems theory and research methods are interdependent and complementary. In Bowen family systems theory, the family is conceptualized as an emotional unit, implying a paradigm shift in which the family unit and not the individual is the unit of analysis. The phases of the scientific method considered within the context of Bowen family systems theory can potentially expand the knowledge base and scope of family issues and family problems in new, innovative ways. The analysis of family data begins and ends with family observations. Bowen’s long-range views of family functioning originated in his habitual observations and extensive note taking about how family members behave.
