Vol. 6 No. 2 (2024): July - Decembre 2024
Humanistic therapy

A Gestalt approach at couples psychotherapy: From attachment theory to emotion-focused therapy (EFT)

pdf (Italiano)
Francesco Marino
SiPGI
DOI: https://doi.org/10.32069/PJ.2021.2.220

Published 2024-09-04

Keywords

  • couples therapy,
  • attachment,
  • emotions

How to Cite

Marino, F., Gautiero, G., Glorioso, A., Lauro, G., Zampi, R., & Perrone, M. (2024). A Gestalt approach at couples psychotherapy: From attachment theory to emotion-focused therapy (EFT). Phenomena Journal - International Journal of Psychopathology, Neuroscience and Psychotherapy, 6(2), 29 – 39. https://doi.org/10.32069/PJ.2021.2.220

Copyright (c) 2024 Francesco Marino, Gabriele Gautiero, Arianna Glorioso, Giusy Lauro, Rita Zampi, Maura Perrone

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

Abstract

Couple’s formation is an ever-changing process, requests for help from couples to therapists are increasing in recent years. Reasons, although apparently current, are linked to a malaise rooted in time. The discomfort experienced by the two partners is not having been able to process the changes in the personal and life cycle of the couple creating new ways of living together. Through the lens of the Gestalt psychotherapist we have mainly analyzed the studies of attachment theory related to working with couples through an integration of approaches, theories and practices, particularly emotionally focused couples therapy. According to attachment theory, the relational styles of adults with their partners are parallel to the child-caregiver relationships, thus characterizing themselves by the search for certain characteristics in the other person. Psychotherapeutic work with couples has among its objectives to modify patients’ internal operating models of attachment. Emotional-focused couples therapy’s based on emotional response and what the partners feel within a supportive relationship. It allows a healing emotional experience, transforming the cycles of negative interaction present in the relationship and experienced with primary caregivers. Gestalt psychotherapy invites us to look at how the partners of the couple realize or block their intentionality to reach and be reached by the other. It works to facilitate the change of punctuation in the sequence of events, to open them the possibility for a new way of living in pairs, free to choose if and how to be in relationship with him/her. The aim of research was to examine the correlates among the attachment theory, emotion focused therapy and Gestalt therapy, considering further studies which allow for greater in-depth analysis of couple dynamics in therapy.

pdf (Italiano)

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