Emotionally Focused Therapy

Emotionally focused therapy, an intervention based on scientific study of adult love and bonding processes in couples, is designed to address distress in the intimate relationships of adults. Strategies from emotionally focused therapy can also be used in family therapy to help family members connect and improve emotional attachment. Couples seeking counseling to improve their relationships may find this method a beneficial approach, as it can help people better understand both their own emotional responses and those of significant people in their lives.

Therapists who provide emotionally focused couples therapy (as the approach is also known) typically work with couples and families to help facilitate the creation of secure, lasting bonds between intimate partners and family members and reinforce any preexisting positive bonds, with the goal of helping those in treatment increase security, closeness, and connection in intimate relationships.

Theory of Emotionally Focused Therapy

Attachment theory, the concept that people are made healthier by emotional contact and need to feel safe in their connections to others, helped guide the development of this approach. Emotionally focused therapy is based on the concept that distress in intimate relationships is often related to deeply rooted fears of abandonment, as an individual's emotional response to these fears may be harmful to relationship partners and put strain on a relationship. When intimate partners are not able to meet each other's emotional needs, they may become stuck in negative patterns of interaction driven by ineffective attempts to get each other to understand their emotions and related needs.