Negative Feedback in Family Systems Theory

Name of Concept

Negative Feedback in Family Systems Theory.

Introduction

Becvar and Becvar (1998, 2012) defined feedback as a central component and important criterion of cybernetic systems. It is classified as communication, or information flow, and is the energy input and output of systems. All behavior in family systems is considered communication and as such, acts as feedback to either maintain or alter the projected course of that system (Becvar and Becvar 1998). Feedback is categorized into two groups, positive and negative. Due to the common social definition often assigned to the words positive and negative, it is important to note that the words, in reference to systemic feedback, do not connote good or bad. Instead, the terms signify the contextual response of the system to the various inputs and outputs of that particular system (Becvar and Becvar 1998). Both positive and negative feedback are typically applied at the level of first-order cybernetics. However, second-order...