Tag: counseling theories for couples

Counseling Theories and Techniques Etiology and maintenance of couples’ presenting problem Psychoanalytic theory views distress in relationships as a product of the couple’s individual unconscious processes, defenses, and transference. Unconscious processes are mental contents, not available to conscious awareness, which provide emotional holding and containment over each partner which they carry over to the current relationship. Defense mechanisms are an attempt to protect the self against danger, overwhelming or unacceptable affect and ideas. Transference is feelings, thoughts, patterns of behavior, originally experienced in relation to significant figures during childhood, redirected towards current relationship. Therefore, the couple’s experiences and feelings can ... Read more