Does couples therapy really work?

Depending on the particular experiences of each couple in therapy, this answer will vary if we ask individually. Each couple is a world, as well as the psychologist who works with them, their training and skills.

Due to these great individual variations, and to answer this question based on evidence, psychology has needed to resort to meta-analyses: studies that compile all the information available on each therapy, grouping and evaluating its efficacy.

What have been the results of these studies?

Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT), developed by clinical psychologist and couples therapist Sue Johnson, has been the big - and only - winner. In studies that evaluated this treatment in hundreds of couples, up to 90% of them reported having significantly improved their relationship. The results of the second most effective therapy reported that only 35% improved their relationship.

"90% of couples doing Emotional Focused Thearpy improve the relatioship"

So why isn't this type of therapy used more?

Sue Johnson's therapy (1947) is relatively recent, although it is already the most popular in some regions. Unfortunately, there is still a great shortage of psychologists trained in this therapy.

At Reconnecting Relationship Therapy, Paula has studied and practiced emotion-focused therapy with dozens of couples from different countries over the past few years. The therapy will thus have several of the essential pillars to achieve the proposed objectives, although the most important will be related to the couple and their daily work towards reconnection. Do we connect?

Read more:

Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy | Society of Clinical Psychology (div12.org)