Comparing the Efficacy of Emotionally Focused Couple Therapy and Integrative Behavioral Couple Therapy in Improving the Symptoms of Emotional Regulation in Couples with Marital Conflict

Current research was carried out to compare the effectiveness of integrative approaches; Emotionally Focused Couple Therapy (EFT) and Integrative Behavioral Couple Therapy (IBCT) in improving the symptoms of emotional regulation in couples with marital conflict. Statistical population included all couples attending Ahvaz Mehrvaran Psychological Clinic. Six couples were selected using purposive sampling. Single case study was used in this experiment. EFT and IBCT were conducted in two to four stages at base line phase within 16 sessions, and the subjects were followed up for three months. They completed Emotional Regulation dysregulation Scale (DERS). Data were analyzed applying visual inspection, improvement percentage, and reliable change index. The participants aged 25 to 40 years of age and either completed high school or had higher educations. Improvement rates in subjects at post-treatment and follow-up attending EFT and IBCT were 31.07% and 31.27% and 24.39% and 24.18%, respectively. In two couples attending EFT the RCI values significantly changed at post-treatment and follow-up stage (P<0.05). In this study, Emotionally Focused Couple Therapy was found to be more effective than Integrative Behavioral Couple Therapy on the magnitude and stability of changes.