Attachment injuries in couple relationships: A new perspective on impassesin couples therapy

This article identifies and operationalizes the newly defined construct of attachment injury. An attachment injury occurs when one partner violates th e expectation that the other will offer comfort and caring in limes of dang er or distress, This incident becomes a clinically recurring theme and crea tes an impasse that blocks relationship repair in couples therapy An attach ment injury is characterized by an abandonment or by a betrayal of trust du ring a critical moment of need. The injurious incident defines the relation ship as insecure and maintains relationship distress because it is continua lly used as a standard for the dependability of the offending partner The c oncept of an attachment injury is defined here in the context of emotionall y focused therapy, an empirically validated, short-term approach to modifyi ng distress in couples. The broad theoretical underpinnings of this concept may be found in attachment theory as applied to adult romantic relationshi ps. Through the delineation of attachment injury events and the ongoing dev elopment of a derailed model of resolution, couples therapists will be bett er able to identify, describe, and effectively treat such injuries and addr ess the therapeutic impasses that are associated with them.