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Extramarital Relations: Counselling Considerations and a Developmental Perspective
Author(s) -
Thompson Anthony P.
Publication year - 1982
Publication title -
australian journal of family therapy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1467-8438
pISSN - 0156-8779
DOI - 10.1002/j.1467-8438.1982.tb00155.x
Subject(s) - perspective (graphical) , phenomenon , psychology , personality , pathological , psychotherapist , developmental psychology , social psychology , medicine , epistemology , computer science , pathology , philosophy , artificial intelligence
Extramarital relations refers to an intimate involvement outside of the traditional marriage bond. As such it represents a prevalent phenomenon. Counsellors and therapists have typically looked for personality disturbance among those involved extra maritally. Only recently have clinicians begun to consider non‐pathological views of extramarital behaviour and to develop their ideas about counselling strategies. This article summarizes the literature relevant to the counselling of those experiencing extramarital difficulties. Following this review, a perspective is presented which views extradyadic conflicts as developmentally appropriate for many couples. Various advantages of this view are outlined.