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Encyclopedia of Couple and Family Therapy pp 300–302Cite as

Bonds in Couple and Family Therapy

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Name of Concept

Bond

Synonyms

Alliance; Attachment; Link; Tie

Introduction

Bond is an emotional attachment between one or more individuals. To be considered an attachment bond, the relationship must have four defining characteristics: proximity maintenance, separation distress, safe haven, and secure base. Relationships may have some of these characteristics (referred to as affiliative bonds) but to be classified as an attachment bond, all four must be present.

Theoretical Context for Concept

Psychologist John Bowlby (1958) was one of the first to formally study the concept of an attachment bond. According to Bowlby, children instinctively form emotional attachments to their caregivers in order to obtain a sense of safety. Other theorists have built upon Bowlby’s original ideas by distinguishing between different attachment styles and by applying attachment bonds to adult and professional relationships (i.e., romantic relationships and therapist-client alliance) (Cassidy and Shaver 2008...

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References

  • Bartholomew, K., & Horowitz, L. M. (1991). Attachment styles among young adults: A test of a four category model. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 61, 226–244.

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  • Bowlby, J. (1958). The nature of the child’s tie to his mother. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 39, 350–373.

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  • Cassidy, J., & Shaver, P. R. (Eds.). (2008). Handbook of attachment theory: Theory, research, and clinical applications. New York: Guilford Press.

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  • Davis, S. D., Lebow, J. L., & Sprenkle, D. H. (2012). Common factors of change in couple therapy. Behavior Therapy, 43(1), 36–48. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beth.2011.01.009.

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  • Farnfield, S., & Holmes, P. (2014). The routledge handbook of attachment: Assessment. London: Routledge.

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  • Hazan, C., & Shaver, P. (1987). Romantic love conceptualized as an attachment process. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 52(3), 511–524.

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  • Johnson, S. M. (2004). The practice of emotionally focused couple therapy: Creating connection (2nd ed.). New York: Brunner-Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. East Carolina University, Greenville, NC, USA

    Andrew S. Brimhall & David M. Haralson

Authors
  1. Andrew S. Brimhall
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  2. David M. Haralson
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Andrew S. Brimhall .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. The Family Institute at Northwestern University, Center for Applied Psychological and Family Studies, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA

    Jay L. Lebow

  2. The Family Institute at Northwestern University, Center for Applied Psychological and Family Studies, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA

    Anthony L. Chambers

  3. The Family Institute at Northwestern University, Center for Applied Psychological and Family Studies, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA

    Douglas C. Breunlin

Section Editor information

  1. University of Saint Joseph, West Harford, CT, USA

    Rachel Diamond

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© 2019 Springer Nature Switzerland AG

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Brimhall, A.S., Haralson, D.M. (2019). Bonds in Couple and Family Therapy. In: Lebow, J.L., Chambers, A.L., Breunlin, D.C. (eds) Encyclopedia of Couple and Family Therapy. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-49425-8_513

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