Psychogénéalogie is the sequel to the hugely successful Aïe mes aieux! (Desclée de Brouwer, 1998), published in English as The Ancestor Syndrome (Routledge, 1998).

According to Anne Ancelin Schützenberger, psychogenealogy is both an art and a science. She coined this term during the 1980s in order to explain her research into transgenerational therapy. Drawing on twenty years of experience in the field of psychotherapy, she has developed a method that enables us to both understand more about our family tree and psychic heritage and use that knowledge to the best of our advantage. In her latest work, she explains her theory of “invisible familial loyalty”: when uncanny patterns and occurrences befall families from generation to generation. While referring to both clinical studies and her own personal experiences, she analyzes the implications of discovering parallels between a person’s life and the lives of their ancestors. Schützenberger gives practical advice for anyone wishing to retrace their ancestry in order to deal with their past and learn more about themselves.