Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy: A Systematic Review of Its Effectiveness over the past 19 Years

Summary & key facts

Researchers combined results from several carefully run studies to see if Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy (EFCT) helps couples feel happier in their relationship. They looked at nine randomized studies to see change from before to after therapy, and four studies to see if gains lasted later on. The review found a very large improvement in marital satisfaction after therapy, and the better satisfaction tended to stick around at follow-up. The authors call this preliminary support, because the pooled result is based on a limited number of studies.

Key facts:

• The paper is a meta-analysis, which means the authors combined results from multiple studies to measure how well EFCT works.
• Nine randomized controlled trials, where couples were randomly put into treatment or comparison groups, were used to measure improvement from before to after EFCT.
• Across those studies, EFCT produced a very large improvement in marital satisfaction (Hedge's g about 2.1).
• Four randomized trials provided data on follow-up after treatment, and those results showed that the improvement in marital satisfaction was maintained over time.
• The statistical tests the authors used showed the sustained improvement was unlikely to be due to chance, but the authors described the evidence as preliminary because it comes from a small group of studies.

Abstract

Purpose: A meta-analysis is the review of several qualifying studies where the findings of each study is analyzed and is then pooled as to determine if an intervention is effective or not. The aim of this meta-analysis was to evaluate if the intervention of Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy (EFCT), also referred to as Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), continues to be an effective intervention, since its last meta-analysis in 1999, and to determine whether the improvements noted in EFCT continue to be effective, over a period of time, following the initial intervention.Method: For the meta-analysis, nine studies which identify as randomized control trials (RCTs), were extracted and utilized from the original systematic search. These nine studies were used to evaluate EFCT's initial pre to post-treatment effectiveness. The portion of the meta-analysis, which evaluates whether EFCT sustained improvement at follow-up, consisted of four studies that identify as RCTs.Results: The results strongly suggest that the intervention of EFCT not only improved marital satisfaction (Hedge's g coefficient = 2.09) but also, the improvement in marital satisfaction was sustained at follow up. This sustained improvement was evident through the results of both the Friedman's repeated-measures and the post hoc Wilcox (χ2 = 6.500, p = 0.039).Conclusion: The findings provide preliminary support that, as it relates to marital satisfaction, EFCT is an effective treatment, both in facilitating change during treatment, and in maintaining those improvements following treatment.

Topics

Attachment and Relationship Dynamics Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development Family Dynamics and Relationships

Categories

Psychology Social Psychology Social Sciences

Tags

Medicine Psychology Psychotherapist

Conditions & symptoms

Feeling disconnected from others