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Couples Experiencing Financial Strain: What We Know and What We Can Do
Author(s) -
Falconier Mariana K.,
Epstein Norman B.
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
family relations
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.772
H-Index - 87
eISSN - 1741-3729
pISSN - 0197-6664
DOI - 10.1111/j.1741-3729.2011.00650.x
Subject(s) - constructive , psychology , coping (psychology) , negotiation , distress , psychological intervention , empirical evidence , social psychology , empirical research , clinical psychology , political science , philosophy , process (computing) , epistemology , psychiatry , computer science , law , operating system
Although much has been written about how to help couples negotiate regarding different spending styles or risk tolerance levels, less has been said about ways in which therapists can assist couples to understand each other's experience of distress regarding financial issues and find constructive individual and dyadic ways to reduce the distress. Given the importance of this topic in today's unstable global and national economies, this article reviews empirical findings regarding the effects of financial strain on couples' relationships as well as the effectiveness of individual and dyadic coping strategies. The authors discuss options for intervening professionally with couples experiencing financial strain and provide assessment and treatment guidelines using stress theories and evidence‐based cognitive‐behavioral couple interventions.