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Systemic Research in Individual, Couple, and Family Therapy and Counseling pp 281–298Cite as

Relationship Distress: Empirical Evidence for a Relational Need Perspective

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Part of the book series: European Family Therapy Association Series ((EFTAS))

Abstract

Alleviating relationship distress within couple therapy requires evidence-based insights into the origins of relationship conflict and dissatisfaction. Within the current chapter, a relational need perspective on relationship distress is taken, and research empirically testing the following questions will be summarized: Does relationship dissatisfaction result from partners being unable to meet each other’s needs? And if so, what kind of needs? Is it a question of need dissatisfaction or need frustration? Does relational need frustration affect the number of times couples argue? How do partners emotionally react when their needs are unmet within their relationship? Which destructive behaviors – intended to cope with need dissatisfaction or frustration – result from a partner’s emotions? Evidence from literature review, surveys, recall/imagine research, and observational research – conducted within samples of couples and individual partners – will be presented, and implications for theory, research, and clinical practice will be discussed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Experimental Clinical and Health Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium

    Lesley L. Verhofstadt & Gaëlle Vanhee

  2. Department of Psychiatry, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent, Belgium

    Gilbert M. D. Lemmens

  3. Department of Head and Skin – Psychiatry and Medical Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium

    Gilbert M. D. Lemmens

Authors
  1. Lesley L. Verhofstadt
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  2. Gilbert M. D. Lemmens
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  3. Gaëlle Vanhee
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Correspondence to Lesley L. Verhofstadt .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Fulda University of Applied Sciences, Fulda, Germany

    Matthias Ochs

  2. University of Applied Sciences Nordhausen, Nordhausen, Germany

    Maria Borcsa

  3. University Clinic of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany

    Jochen Schweitzer

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Verhofstadt, L.L., Lemmens, G.M.D., Vanhee, G. (2020). Relationship Distress: Empirical Evidence for a Relational Need Perspective. In: Ochs, M., Borcsa, M., Schweitzer, J. (eds) Systemic Research in Individual, Couple, and Family Therapy and Counseling. European Family Therapy Association Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-36560-8_16

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