There have always been many things you can do short of actually ending an unhappy marriage—buying a house, having an affair, and having a baby are the most common, I suppose. Nora Ephron,Heartburn
Abstract
Although most couples' problems are brought to “marriage” counselors, a great percentage of these marriages, treated or not, will end in divorce. In this article, the importance of the role of the therapist's values and attitudes about divorce is stressed as a significant ingredient in the therapy on this difficult decision. A number of the tasks of RET divorce counseling are reviewed, including helping the individual(s) decide whether to remain married or divorce, reviewing their perceptions for distortions of data and their cognitions for distortions of evaluation or reasoning,and helping them to implement the decision, survive the aftermath, and work out a changed relationship with the exspouse.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Annon, J.S. (1974)The behavioral treatment of sexual problems, volume 1: brief therapy Honolulu: Enabling Systems, Inc.
Ellis, A. (1972).The civilized couple's guide to extramarital adventure. New York: Peter H. Wyden, Inc.
Ellis, A. & Harper, R. (1974).A guide to successful marriage. No. Hollywood, CA: Wilshire Book Co.
Ephron, N. (1984).Heartburn, New York: Alfred A.Knopf, Inc.
Freeman, A., & Walen, S. (1981).Marital, divorce, and sexual counseling: A cognitive therapy perspective. Workshop presented at the annual meeting, American Psychological Association, Los Angeles, California.
Greenwald, H., & Rich, E. (1984).The happy person. New York: Avon Books.
Humphrey, F.G. (1983).Marital therapy. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
Jacobson, N.S., & Margolin, G. (1979).Marital therapy. New York: Brunner/Mazel.
Keyes, K. (1979).A conscious person's guide to relationships. Marina del Re, CA: DeVorss & Co.
Prochaska, J., & Prochaska, J. (1978). Twentieth century trends in marriage and marital therapy. In T.J. Paolino and B.S. McCarthy (Eds.),Marriage and marital therapy. New York: Brunner/Mazel.
Stuart, R.B. (1980).Helping couples change. New York: Guilford Press.
Walen, S.R. (1983). Cleaning out my filing cabinet.The Maryland Psychologist, 6, 15–17.
Walen, S.R., & Roth, D. (1983). Cognitive therapy in couples' treatment. Workshop presented, annual meeting of the Maryland Psychological Association, Baltimore, Maryland.
Walen, S.R., DiGiuseppe, R., & Wessler, R. (1980).A practitioner's guide to rational emotive therapy. New York: Oxford University Press.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Walen, S.R., Bass, B.A. Rational divorce counseling. J Rational-Emot Cognitive-Behav Ther 4, 95–109 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01073483
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01073483