Muzamil Kousar (06010611-011)

 Marriage is something that has been part

of all human society

 Marriage is an institution generated by

God.
 Monogamous Heterosexual Marriage

Polygamy Marriage Same Sex Marriage

 After the “Honeymoon Phase”, couples
start to realize that their dreamy, ideal
mate is only human and has many
annoying habits.

Interval of marriage is;

 Acceptance
 Compromise
 Couples are entering middle age and they
start re-examining their life goals
Mid-life crisis
 Couples often find themselves alone with
each other again. Usually the kids are
grown and gone or more independent
 Marriage counseling, also called couples
therapy, helps couples and resolves conflicts
and improves their relationship.
 It gives tools to couples
 To communicate better,
 Negotiate differences,
 Problem solve
 Argue in a healthier way.
 The idea of marriage counseling was
established the American Association of
Marriage Counselors in 1942.
 American Association of Marriage and
Family Therapists (AAMFT).
 Focus on:
 The marriage relationship, rather than
just the individuals involved.
 Marriage counselors are specifically
designed as licensed marriage and family
therapists (L.M.T.S).
 A master’s or doctoral degree
 Graduate training in marriage and family
therapy
 And training under the supervision of
other experts
Before Joining You Can Ask You Counselor

 Education and experience.

 Logistics.

 Treatment plan.

 Fees and insurance.

 Reason logically
 Understanding the meaning of the words and
ideas
 Communicate well
 Make decisions based on personal judgment
and verifiable data
 Ability to plan and make decisions
 Perform a variety of duties which may change
often
 Realize that clients may blame counselor for
their problems
 Clinical Psychologist
 Counseling Psychologist
 Psychiatrist
 Psychoanalyst
 Marriage and Family Therapist
 Licensed Professional Counselor
 Communication problems
 Sexual difficulties
 Conflicts about child rearing or blended families
 Substance abuse
 Financial problems
 Physical or mental conditions
 Cultural clashes
 Unemployment
 Anger
 Infidelity
 Divorce
1. Concurrent Marital Counseling (The same
counselor work effectively with each partner)
2. Collaborative Marital Counseling (Each
partner is seen individually by different
counselors)
3. Conjoint Marital Counseling (The couple is
seen together by one or more counselors)
4. Couple Group Counseling (Several couples
are seen together by one or more counselors)
 Stages of Marital Counseling

 Stage One Relationship building

 Stage Two Assessment and
diagnosis
 Stage Three Formulation of
counseling goals
 Stage Four Implementation of plan
 Stage Five Termination
 Stage Six Research and evaluation
 First five to six weekly sessions

 Next stage is extremely difficult

 If the couple survives the second stage and

remains in counseling
 Psychoanalytic
 Social learning
 Behavioral
 Bowen family systems
 Structural-strategic
 Rational-emotive
Based on the theory of object relation

Counseling Process and Techniques

 Transference
 Individual histories of each partner of relationship
 Dream work
 Analysis of resistance
 Catharsis: Catharsis, the expression of pent-up
emotion,

“The goal of this approach is for individuals and

couples to gain new insights into their lives and
change their behaviors”
Marriage partners-either have -a deficit or excess of needed
behaviors

Techniques
1. Self-reports

2. Observations

3. Communication-enhancement training exercises

4. Homework assignments

Much of social-learning theory is based on linear thinking,

that A is the likely cause of B.
The behavior is maintained or eliminated by
consequences
Treatment process
Patient training, marriage relationship and
couple communication
Role of Counselor
As a teacher, expert, and reinforcer
 Systematic  Extinction
desensitization
 Modeling
 Positive
reinforcement

 Generalization
Marital theory is on differentiation
(distinction) of one's thoughts from one's
emotions and of oneself from others.
Techniques
 To differentiate oneself from family of
origin
 Assessment of self and family through
Genograms
Couples try new behaviors because their old
behaviors are not working

How To Learn New Behaviors

 Relabeling
 Paradoxing
 Prescribing the symptoms
Couples, like other individuals, often become
disturbed because of what they think rather
than because of specific actions that occur in
relationships & counselor use ABC method

The goal is to understand the illogical beliefs,

otherwise they tend to emphasis is on
particular problems like jealousy, sexuality,
etc
 Increasing confidence and self esteem of
individuals
 Working out conflict resolution
 Improving communication between a couple
 Identifying the issues that are really affecting
the relationship rather than focusing on more
superficial problems
 Teaching couples how to pull together rather
than push one another away
 Providing help and resources to make the
marriage stronger and more fulfilling
 Some couples tend to depend on marriage
counseling.

 Sometimes, one partner wants the

marriage to work and the other doesn't.