​​EMOTION-FOCUSED THERAPY (EFT)

Changing emotions is seen as central to the origins and treatment of human problems, but this does not mean that working with emotions is the sole focus in EFT. Most problems have biological, emotional, cognitive, motivational, behavioral, physiological, social, and cultural sources, and many of these need attentions.


EFT adopts an integrative focus on motivation, cognition, behavior, and interaction; the focus is on people’s emotions as a primary pathway to change. (L. S. Greenberg, 2017).

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Emotion-focused therapy integrates active process-guiding therapeutic methods from Gestalt therapy and focusing within the frame of a person-centered relationship but gives emotion a central role in therapy as a source of meaning, direction, and growth (Greenberg et al., 1993; Elliott et al., 2004). 

EFT differs from CBT in seeing emotion as more influential in thought and belief production than vice versa and in placing an emphasis on in-session process and change rather than homework and extra sessional change (Leslie S. Greenberg, 2010).
EFT emphasizes the importance of awareness, acceptance, and understanding of emotion; the visceral experience of emotion in therapy; and the importance of changing emotion in promoting psychotherapeutic change.
Clients are helped in EFT to better identify, experience, accept, explore, make sense of, transform, and flexibly manage their emotions. As a result, they become more skillful in accessing the important information and meanings about themselves and their world that emotions provide, as well as become more skilful in using that information to live vitally and adaptively (Greenberg L.S., 2017).

EFT treatment has been broken into three major phases (Greenberg L. and Watson J., 2006):
1- The first phase involves bonding and emotional awareness,
2- Middle phase involves evoking and exploring core maladaptive emotion schemes and,
3- Therapy concludes with a transformation phase that involves constructing alternatives through generating new emotions and reflecting on aroused emotion to create new narrative meaning.

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EMOTION FOCUSSED

THERAPY

Clients in therapy are also encouraged to face dreaded emotions to process and transform them. A major premise guiding intervention in EFT is that transformation is possible only when individuals accept themselves as they are (Greenberg L.S., 2017).


Couples and families in distress can benefit from the Emotion Focused Therapy and learn to improve their relationships. Often, clients are dealing with anger, fear, loss of trust, or sense of betrayal in their relationship can benefit. Also, it can help reduce individual symptoms of depression or trauma (Greenberg L.S., 2017).

References:

​Rice, L.N. and Greenberg, L. (eds.) (1984) Patterns of Change. New York: Guilford Press
Elliott, R. (2013) Person-centered/experiential psychotherapy for anxiety difficulties: theory, research and practice, Person-Centered and Experiential Psychotherapies, 12 (1): 16–32.
Greenberg, L.S., Rice, L.N., and Elliott, R. (1993) Facilitating Emotional Change: The Moment-by-Moment Process. New York: Guilford Press.
Elliott, R., Watson, J.C., Goldman, R.N., & Greenberg, L.S. (2004) Learning EmotionFocused Therapy: The Process-Experiential Approach to Change. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Leslie S. Greenberg (2010), Emotion-Focused Therapy: A Clinical Synthesis. F O C U S; The Journal of Long Learning in Psychiatry. Vol. VIII, No. 1, Winter 2010.
Greenberg L, Watson J (2006): Emotion-Focused Therapy of Depression. Washington, DC, American Psychological Association, 2006.
Leslie S. Greenberg (2010), Emotion-Focused Therapy: A Clinical Synthesis. F O C U S; The Journal of Long Learning in Psychiatry. Vol. VIII, No. 1, Winter 2010.

L.S. Greenberg (2017). Emotion-Focused Therapy Revised Edition by the American Psychological Association. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/15971-001.