Comparative Study of the Effectiveness of Emotional-Focused Couple Therapy and Narrative Couple Therapy on Marital Conflicts

Abstract

Aim and Background: Disturbance of marital relationship is one of the most common stressors in recent decade which has a significant negative impact on the satisfaction of couples and their children. The purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness of Emotional-Focused Couple Therapy (EFCT) and Narrative Couple Therapy (NCT) on marital conflicts. Methods and Materials: This study was a clinical trial. The sample consisted of 45 maladaptive couples who referred to counseling centers in Isfahan. Participants were randomly assigned to three groups of 15, namely the EFCT, NCT and control groups. Participants were assessed using the Marital Conflict Questionnaire (MCQ) in pretest and posttest. Data were analyzed by multivariate analysis of covariance. Findings: Both the NCT and EFCT approaches at posttest significantly improved marital conflict compared to the control group at all levels of marital conflict. Conclusions: In general, the highest reduction of marital conflicts was observed in the EFCT, NCT and control groups, respectively. In fact, EFCT may be more effective in reducing marital conflict than NCT.

Keywords

• marital conflict
• emotionally focused couple therapy
• narrative couple therapy