Facilitating intimacy: A comparative outcome study of emotionally focused and cognitive interventions.

Abstract

The present study delineated intimacy from other confounding concepts in the literature and investigated the differential effects of two types of marital interventions taken from Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) and Cognitive Marital Therapy (CMT), on levels of marital intimacy, dyadic trust and dyadic adjustment. It was hypothesized that both EFT and CMT would have a positive effect on levels of intimacy, trust and adjustment as compared to a wait-list control group, and that there would be a differential effect in favor of EFT as compared to CMT. Thirty-six couples free of distress and seeking to enhance their intimate relationship were randomly assigned to EFT, CMT or a wait-list control group. Therapists' interventions were monitored and found to be faithfully implemented. Groups were equivalent on demographic variables and quality of therapeutic alliance. Results indicated that both EFT and CMT group means were higher than controls on the self-report measures of intimacy. Observational measures of intimacy revealed differential effects in favor of EFT as compared to CMT at posttest. At a ten-week follow-up, EFT group means were higher than CMT on self-reported intimacy and adjustment.