Epistemology in Family Therapy

Epistemology is the philosophical study of how one comes to know and believe things about the world in which they live. The word is rooted in episteme from the Greek word for “knowledge” and logos, meaning “the study of.” Epistemology explores what individuals believe about knowledge and how they draw conclusions about the environment in which they live. Epistemology in family therapy is important because the underlying beliefs individuals hold about knowledge dictate the rules used to create understanding of experiences and to influence the descriptive language used to describe these experiences. Counselors who work with families need to understand their assumptions regarding how they can come to know something about another individual. Gregory Bateson is credited for bringing thoughts about epistemology into the field ...