Indigenous Family System
A three-generation Navajo (Diné) family genogram illustrating the extended kinship network, matrilineal clan system, and the lasting effects of historical...
Interactive Indigenous Family System
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About This Genogram
A three-generation Navajo (Diné) family genogram illustrating the extended kinship network, matrilineal clan system, and the lasting effects of historical trauma including boarding school experiences. Demonstrates the central role of the grandmother as matriarch, the resilience of cultural traditions alongside intergenerational trauma, and the tension between reservation life and urban relocation.
Key Patterns in This Genogram
Cultural Context
How cultural values and traditions shape family structure and relationships.
Family Roles
Culturally defined family roles, expectations, and intergenerational dynamics.
Immigration & Adaptation
How families navigate cultural transitions while maintaining identity and bonds.
Family Analysis
This 3-generation genogram maps 11 family members with birth years spanning from 1938 to 2001, comprising 5 males and 6 females (1 deceased). The genogram tracks 5 medical/psychological condition categories and 3 emotional relationship types across 7 documented dyads. The index patient is Nicole Nez (b. 1990), social worker (indian health service).
This culturally-informed genogram captures family dynamics across 3 generations, representing Navajo/Diné heritage. Occupational roles across generations — Alice as weaver, traditional healer (herbalist), Samuel as rancher, uranium mine worker, Mary as community health representative, Raymond as unemployed (formerly construction) — illustrate the family's socioeconomic trajectory.
Emotional relationship mapping reveals 4 close relationships, 2 distant relationships, 1 cutoff_repaired relationship. Specific patterns include a close relationship between Alice and Nicole, a close relationship between Alice and Sarah, a close relationship between Alice and Mary.
Medical and psychological conditions are documented in 9 of 11 family members (82%). Substance appear in 4 members (Samuel, Raymond, Laura...), affecting 1 female and 3 males. Depressive disorders appear in 3 members (Mary, Raymond, Justin), affecting 1 female and 2 males. Trauma-related conditions appear in 2 members (Alice, Samuel), affecting 1 female and 1 male. Comorbidity is observed in 3 family members, with Alice presenting 2 concurrent condition categories. The multigenerational prevalence of substance suggests both genetic predisposition and possible environmental or behavioral transmission pathways.
This genogram demonstrates the importance of culturally-informed clinical practice. The Navajo/Diné cultural context shapes family expectations, gender roles, and help-seeking behaviors in ways that must be understood before clinical interpretation. Cultural genograms help practitioners avoid ethnocentric assumptions and recognize how migration, acculturation, and cultural identity intersect with family dynamics and psychological well-being.
Genogram Symbols Used in This Example
The following standard genogram symbols appear in the Indigenous Family System. Each symbol follows McGoldrick and Gerson clinical notation conventions.
Person Symbols
- Male (Square)
- A square represents a male family member in standard genogram notation.
- Female (Circle)
- A circle represents a female family member in standard genogram notation.
Status Markers
- Deceased (X)
- An X drawn through the symbol indicates the person is deceased.
- Index Patient (Arrow)
- An arrow pointing to a person identifies them as the index patient — the individual who is the focus of the clinical assessment.
Structural Relationships
- Marriage
- A solid horizontal line connecting two individuals represents a marriage or committed partnership.
- Divorce
- A marriage line with two diagonal slashes indicates divorce or legal separation.
- Parent-Child
- A vertical line descending from a couple line to a child symbol represents a parent-child relationship.
Emotional Relationships
- Close
- Two parallel lines between individuals represent an emotionally close relationship.
- Distant
- A dotted line represents an emotionally distant or disengaged relationship.
Medical Conditions
- Anxiety Conditions
- Shading in the genogram symbol indicates anxiety-spectrum diagnoses (GAD, panic disorder, phobias, OCD).
- Depressive Disorders
- Shading indicates depressive conditions (major depression, dysthymia, bipolar disorder).
- Diabetes
- Shading indicates Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes.
- Trauma/PTSD
- Shading indicates post-traumatic stress disorder or complex trauma responses.
Related Resources
- Explore our guide to cultural genograms for mapping heritage and cultural context.
- See how genograms in social work practice incorporates cultural assessment.
- This example uses the close relationship symbol to denote emotional closeness between family members.
- The distant relationship symbol in this genogram indicates emotional disengagement.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Educational disclaimer: This genogram example is an educational illustration of genogram notation and family systems concepts. Examples based on public figures use publicly available information. They are not clinical documents. All examples are intended for learning genogram symbols and patterns.