Date

5-2014

Department

Counseling Department

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Chair

David Jenkins

Keywords

Addiction Recovery, Attachment, Emotion Focused Therapy, Relationship Satisfaction

Disciplines

Counseling | Counseling Psychology | Psychology

Abstract

This study investigates the efficacy of Emotion Focused Therapy (EFT) for couples in an addiction recovery program. The literature review revealed that individuals with a secure attachment style experience increased relational satisfaction and report better ability to manage life's challenges as compared with individuals with an insecure attachment style. A pretest-posttest design was used to investigate the effect of EFT on quality of recovery from addiction. The primary measure's percentile rank scores were comparatively analyzed. A single case multiple baseline design was implemented to draw inferences based on examining the participants' assessment scores across baseline and intervention phases. The purpose of this study was to demonstrate the effect of EFT by showing that participants reported increased quality of recovery from addiction, movement away from an insecure attachment style and toward a secure attachment style, and increased relational satisfaction when and only when the intervention was applied. This research serves to further the understanding of the role of EFT couple therapy in addiction recovery. Increased knowledge related to how an interpersonal connection can facilitate the recovery process is helpful to practitioners serving this population.

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