1st Edition

Genealogy, Psychology and Identity Tales from a family tree

By Paula Nicolson Copyright 2017
    132 Pages
    by Routledge

    132 Pages
    by Routledge

    The popularity of amateur genealogy and family history has soared in recent times. Genealogy, Psychology and Identity explores this popular international pastime and offers reasons why it informs our sense of who we are, and our place in both contemporary culture and historical context. We will never know any of the people we discover from our histories in person, but for several reasons we recognize that their lives shaped ours. Paula Nicolson draws on her experiences tracing her own family history to show how people can connect with archival material, using documents and texts to expand their knowledge and understanding of the psychosocial experiences of their ancestors.

    Key approaches to identity and relationships lend clues to our own lives but also to what psychosocial factors run across generations. Attachment and abandonment, trusting, being let down, becoming independent, migration, health and money, all resonate with the psychological experiences that define the outlooks, personalities and the ways that those who came before us related to others.

    Nicolson highlights the importance of genealogy in the development of identity and the therapeutic potential of family history in cultivating well-being that will be of interest to those researching their own family tree, genealogists and counsellors, as well as students and researchers in social psychology and social history.

    Introduction  Part 1: Developing ContextsChapter  1.Tales from a Family Tree – who do you think you really are?  2. Methodologies – Formal, Practical and Serendipitous  Part 2: Psychological and Historical Processes  3. Pain and Loss across the years  4. Gender and Power in Family Systems  5. Immigration, Migration and Identity  6. Unhappiness, Denial and Self Destruction  7. Health, Wealth and Identity  8. Settlement of the Narrative: What do I tell my grandchildren?

    Biography

    Paula Nicolson is author of several successful books on women’s psychology, health and gender-power relations. Paula retired from her full time academic post as professor and former head of department at Royal Holloway, University of London, UK in 2011. She continues to write, lecture and consult to individuals and organizations while developing as a playwright.

    "Such an engaging read! Nicolson has found an original method for drawing out meaning for identity from her extended family tree. She encompasses major social and psychological topics: loss, immigration, wealth, power and self-destruction. These are all related to identity, her own and those of her family affected. The range is extraordinary from California to the Russian borders, from Scottish crofters (through her husband's family) to American senators, Jewish entrepreneurs and victims of Billy the Kid. It is written with a lightness of touch that belies the extensive work which underpins it. It is both a good read and instructive for those looking to family and ancestors for self-understanding or therapeutic aid. It also tells a tale about Britain today." Antonia Bifulco, Professor Lifespan Psychology, Co-director Centre for Abuse and Trauma Studies, Middlesex University. Expert in attachment.

    "A timely and thought provoking publication. Paula Nicolson is an insightful guide to social genealogy from a psychological perspective that is enhanced with rich examples drawn from her own fascinating family histories. Above all else Nicolson demonstrates that complex concepts can be expressed with clarity and that big ideas drawn from the humanities and social science research are of practical use to family and other historians."  Graham Smith, Royal Holloway, University of London, UK