Behavioral Marriage Therapy. IV. Take Two Aspirin and Call Us in the Morning

Abstract

The Jacobson-Weiss critique of the Gurman-Knudson and Gurman-Kniskern discussions of behavioral marriage therapy (BMT), while scholarly, derives from such a narrow conceptual set that, with only minor exceptions, Jacobson and Weiss have failed basically to comprehend the essence of our theoretical and logical criticisms of BMT. Moreover, a careful reanalysis of the research cited by our critics as evidence for the efficacy of BMT reveals the strength of the empirical foundation of this approach to have been greatly exaggerated. While few of our concerns about a preominantly behavioral approach to marriage therapy have been ameliorated by Jacobson and Weiss' commentary, some success seems to have been achieved in terms of our original purpose: to stimulate critical thinking about the premises and process of marital therapy.