PSY632B Couples Therapy
Lead Faculty: Dr. Valerie L. Alexander
This course provides a comprehensive look at the theories, techniques, and critical issues involved in treating couples. It will provide a focus on major approaches to the treatment of married and unmarried couples, including resilience and recovery models, as well as a survey of research on marriage and marital therapy. Students will have an opportunity to practice counseling sessions with couples in a role-play format.
- Conduct an initial interview to assess the relationship dynamics, resilience, demonstrable psychopathology, and complicating factors of the couple.
- Formulate and write a treatment plan integrating information from the inital interview.
- Assess the impact of ethical, cultural, and gender issues on the treatment of couples.
- Apply psychotherapeutic strategies and techniques, including resilience and recovery models, consistent with a theoretical model.
- Formulate specific interventions with a theoretical model of couple counseling.
- Compare and contrast various theoretical approaches to couples counseling.