Constellations
Constellations (systemic layouts) are. a therapeutic and exploratory methodology that helps to identify and address hidden patterns and dynamics at a deep level in families, relationships, organisations or other systems. It is based on the assumption that problems are often passed down through generations, creating invisible loyalties and barriers that can lead to stress, conflict and health problems.
The constellations method is often used family therapy and psychotherapy. The method was developed by German therapist Bert Hellinger. In addition to Hellinger, the founder of psychodrama, Jacob Moreno, the developer of family psychotherapy, Virginia Satir, Iván Böszörményi-Nagy, who studied intergenerational influences, Alfred Adler, who studied family dynamics and introduced the concept of “family constellation”, Eric Berne, Franz Ruppert and many other psychotherapists have contributed to the constellation methodology.
Fundamentals of constellations
Basic types of constellations:
- Family constellations: focus on discovering and healing family patterns and traumas.
- Systemic constellations: used in many areas, including organisations, education and health, to improve system performance. This includes business and organisational constellations.
How it works:
- Group constellations: people in a group represent elements of a system, such as family members, and show the dynamics of relationships and tensions.
- Individual constellations: symbols (e.g. puppets, imagination or metaphor cards) are used to allow the client to privately explore their inner patterns.
Key objectives:
- Identifying systemic conflicts and traumas.
- Finding solutions that restore balance and harmony in the system.
- Personal and collective healing
Results:
The effects of constellations are often subconscious and can be long-lasting, triggering profound inner changes. It is also used as a complement to other therapies and self-development programmes.
History and Bert Hellinger
In his work, Bert Hellinger set out a number of important principles:
- Right to belong (family scheme): Every family member has the right to belong to the scheme. The right to belong is a right of everyone to belong. If someone is ‘excluded’ or forgotten (e.g. a parent who has left or a child who has been lost), this can destabilise the system.
- Your place in the hierarchy: In every family system, there is a hierarchy where each member has a place and a role. In every family, there is a role and a right hierarchy. If this hierarchy is not respected (e.g. when younger family members take over from their parents), this can lead to imbalances.
- Balance: unresolved traumas or conflicts can be passed down the generations, affecting subsequent family members even if they are unaware of their existence.
Constellations have evolved over time into many different forms and have been used in different contexts, not only in family therapy.
Family constellations
Family constellations aim to explore and address family and systemic patterns that can affect a person’s life and psychological well-being. It works on the premise that each person is part of a larger system, such as a family, and that their problems may arise from unmet needs or imbalances within that system. In the constellation process, people are selected to represent family members or significant factors and placed in a space that creates a kind of ‘living picture’ of the family or system. This picture helps the constellation and the participants to uncover hidden dynamics and conflicts that can cause problems.
When are family constellations useful?
Let’s imagine that a person experiences recurring relationship problems, such as difficulties in forming or maintaining close relationships. He or she may feel an unexplained sense of guilt or fear of abandonment that he or she cannot relate to his or her own experiences.
Family constellations may reveal that an ancestor has experienced a trauma, such as the death of a parent or exclusion, which has left a mark on the whole family system. Discovering and working with these dynamics can free a person from the influence of past patterns.
Key benefits:
- Raising awareness: hidden problems and their roots are identified.
- Healing: Helps release generational tensions and restore harmony.
- Inner peace: Brings clarity and lightness of cognition to members of the system.
Family constellations are often used in addition to other therapeutic or self-development methods and are useful for uncovering and resolving complex and invisible patterns.
Business constellations
Business constellations are an adapted form of family constellations used in business and organisational contexts.
It is used to analyse the internal structures of companies and teams, to find solutions to conflict situations, to improve management structures or to identify hidden dynamics that can affect workflow and business strategies.
The objectives of business constellations:
- Improve teamwork
- Improve ineffective governance
- Resolve conflicts between team members
- Create better synergy and balance between team members
- Identify and solve hidden problems in the organisation
- Resolve conflicts between company values and objectives
- Identify obstacles to the implementation of the new strategy
- Examine the effectiveness of the market position and business model
When are business constellations useful?
Let’s imagine that a major change is underway in a company, for example the creation of a new level of management. Despite strategic plans and communication, team motivation remains low and results do not improve. In a business constellation, representatives could “play” different elements of the business, such as managers, teams, strategies or customers. In the process, it may become clear that team members do not feel involved in the decision-making process, or that the company’s objectives are at odds with employees’ values. With this insight, management can make changes that restore balance and efficiency.
Key benefits:
- Understanding the dynamics: reveals unconscious tensions and problems.
- Holistic problem solving: helps to find workable and systemic solutions.
- Improving organisational culture: creates clearer relationships and aligns values between team and management.
Business constellations are well suited to complex and long-term problems and can be used as a complementary tool in management consulting, teamwork and strategic planning.
Organisation constellations
Like business constellations, organisational constellations focus on the dynamics of organisations and institutions. Here, constellations are not limited to the people or business processes of a company, but also encompass larger systemic factors such as cultural and social influences on the organisation. Organisational constellations are often used in management and human resources work. For example, the Argentine legal system applies the constellation method.
Examples of uses:
- Assessing and optimising management styles.
- Streamlining workflows and processes.
- Resolving internal conflicts between teams.
When are organisational constellations useful?
Let’s imagine a company that has recently merged with another company. Members of the new organisation experience stress, conflict and low motivation. In the process of constellation, the representatives may reveal that the two separate organisational cultures are not in harmony. For example, one culture may value hierarchy and the other flexibility, creating a subconscious contradiction. With this insight, management can take action to create a coherent culture and foster collaboration.
Key benefits:
- In-depth review: reveals hidden obstacles and problems.
- Systemic balance: helps restore harmony between the different elements of an organisation.
- Immediate applicability: results can lead to rapid and effective changes in management or structure.
Organisational constellations are an effective tool for solving complex problems and developing organisations. It is often used as a complementary method in management consulting, strategy planning and teamwork to achieve a more holistic and effective system.
Group or individual constellation?
An individual constellation is a form of family constellation or systemic constellation, usually done between the constellator and the client, without the participation of the group.
This method is often used when the client is unwilling or unable to participate in group work, but still wishes to explore systemic patterns in his/her life and resolve internal or family conflicts.
Characteristics of the individual constellation
Smaller and more private format: unlike group constellations, where other people represent family members or significant others, an individual constellation takes place only between the client and the constellator.
It is therefore more private and may suit those who are uncomfortable in a group or prefer a more personal approach.
Substitutes and symbols: In group constellations, other people play a role in representing different members or elements of the system, but in an individual constellation, symbols such as figurines, dolls, pieces of paper or other objects are usually used to represent family members or other participants in the system.
The client places these objects in space to represent relationships and dynamics.
Imagination and visualisation: imagination and visualisation are often used for the individual constellation.
A constellation is often used in constellation analysis. The constellation practitioner may ask the client to imagine in their mind’s eye their family members or significant others to create a systemic picture.
The client is asked to feel and become aware of the emotions and thoughts that arise when he or she thinks about or “encounters” these people in his or her imagination.
The role of the constellator: in an individual constellation, the role of the constellator is even more important as there is no group support.
The constellator guides the client through the process, helps to identify dynamics and patterns, and guides the client towards solutions.
The constellator may also ‘represent’ elements of the system or provide feedback through intuition and knowledge.
Benefits and advantages of an individual constellation:
- Private and deeper self work: the individual constellation offers an intimate and deep experience, allowing the client to focus on their own personal feelings and patterns without being distracted by group dynamics.
- Inner work and awareness: the method focuses on the client’s inner experiences and perceptions, helping to unlock hidden inner and family patterns.
- Flexibility: the individual constellation format is more flexible, allowing therapist and client to work through symbols and visualisation, which may suit some people better than group work.
Disadvantages of the individual constellation:
- Less group dynamics: since the individual constellation does not involve other people, there is no immediate reaction and feedback from the representatives, which is characteristic of group constellations.
Some people find that group work brings out deeper and unexpected patterns that may be harder to achieve in individual work. - The Constellator’s greater responsibility: in an individual constellation, the Constellator must be particularly experienced and skilled, as they have to fulfil several roles: mentor, analyser and supporter.
Individual constellations are often used when a person wants to work specifically with their own internal or family patterns, but feels more comfortable in a private environment.
This method is also well suited to those who want deep and personal self-development.
Problems that constellations help to solve
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business development
1. Family conflicts and generational trauma
Constellations help to identify and resolve deep-rooted conflicts and traumas that are passed down through generations, such as divorces, losses or unresolved patterns related to ancestors.
2. Recurring patterns in personal relationships
If a person experiences repeated failures in relationships, the constellations may reveal subconscious loyalties or dynamics that cause this.
3. Work and career problems
Constellations can help to solve problems such as burnout, dissatisfaction or difficulties in communicating with colleagues and managers.
4. Organisational conflicts
Conflicts within a company, such as those between management and employees, can be made visible and resolved through constellations.
5. Ineffective teamwork
Constellations help to identify how the roles and relationships of team members affect effectiveness and to find ways to achieve better cooperation.
6. Strategic barriers to entrepreneurship
When the growth of an organisation or the achievement of its objectives is stalled, constellations can reveal hidden obstacles, such as conflicts between values or priorities.
7. Lack of personal identity and clarity of purpose
Constellations allow people to explore how their systemic connections affect their sense of self and help them to find clarity about their goals.
8. Health problems
The reasons why health problems persist can be found in systemic entanglements, such as family traumas or repressed emotions, which constellations help to release.
9. Conflicts of cultures or values
Important in both family and work contexts where different values or cultures create tensions. Constellations help to build coherence and understanding.
10. Problems with new initiatives or projects
When a new project or initiative does not work as expected, constellations can reveal hidden factors, such as unclear roles, resistance to change or past ties.
Summary: Constellations offer a powerful tool for tackling deep and complex problems. Constellations are a powerful and powerful tool for empowering individuals and organisations. They unlock unconscious patterns and dynamics, allowing systemic solutions to be found that restore balance and support forward movement at both personal and organisational levels.
Constellations near you
If you have one of these questions, you will find a solution on the Belong Events constellations platform:
- Are you looking for a constellator with whom you feel a real fit?
- Who offers a constellation service near my home?
- When is the event of my interest, at a time and place to suit me?
- Which constellation services are available in my chosen location?
Institutions and information sources
International institutions and good sources of information:
