A Science of Couple Therapy: For What Should We Seek Empirical Support?

Abstract As scientist-practitioners, we want our clinical efforts to be supported by scientific evidence. Indeed, science can provide the most compelling evidence that our treatments are beneficial to our clients rather than ineffective or harmful for them. Not only does scientific evidence meet our own values and standards for the credibility of psychotherapeutic treatment, it provides accountability to our clients and to third-party payers, who increasingly want evidence that what they pay for is effective. Thus, the demand for scientific evidence is high, and many treatments and providers seek the mantle of scientific respectability.