Clinical Treatment Directions for Infidelity

Clinical Treatment Directions for Infidelity considers the psychotherapeutic treatment of infidelity from a fresh perspective. Psychotherapy (both couples and individual) for infidelity is notoriously challenging, and clinicians tend to disagree on case conceptualizations and treatment objectives. This book approaches infidelity from a client-centered, phenomenological perspective, informed by qualitative research and social context. Essential for clinicians who work with cases of infidelity, it provides a framework and set of tools with which to approach these cases from a non-judgmental stance that helps clients glean meaning from these experiences and make conscious personal choices about how to move forward.

Nicolle Zapien, PhD, is a licensed psychotherapist in private practice in San Francisco, an AASECT certified sex therapist, and the dean of the School of Professional Psychology and Health at the California Institute of Integral Studies. She holds a PhD in psychology from Saybrook University, an MA in counseling psychology from the Professional School of Psychology, and an EdM in teaching and curriculum from Harvard University. She lives in Berkeley, California, with her husband, two children, and beloved rescue dog.

Contents, Preface, Acknowledgments, Part I, 1. What Is Infidelity?, 2. Infidelity Today in the United States, 3. Psychotherapy for Infidelity, 4. Phenomenology and Phenomenological Research Methods, 5. The Structure of the Experience of Beginning an Affair, Part II, 6. Clinical Treatment Directions, 7.Clinical Skills Development and Practical Application, Bibliography, Index