Psychology
Document Type
Article
Abstract
Effective couple interventions, such as Integrative Behavioral Couple Therapy and the Relationship Checkup, include the labeling of common relationship patterns. This study hypothesized that a micro-intervention using nature metaphors, such as “Porcupine–Turtle,” would produce greater improvements in relationship health relative to descriptive labels such as “Approach–Withdraw.” Twenty-five couples were presented with nature metaphor patterns, while 24 couples were presented with descriptive patterns. Several measures of relationship health showed significant improvements across both groups, while other measures showed significant improvements for descriptive patterns only. Generally, nature metaphor patterns were initially rated as more novel and more resonant. Broadly, these results add support for the effectiveness of relationship pattern labeling. The effectiveness of nature metaphor patterns may be improved if introduced with more guidance to help couples capitalize on initial, stronger senses of resonance. © 2026 The Author(s). Journal of Marital and Family Therapy published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy.
Publication Title
Journal of Marital and Family Therapy
Publication Date
7-2026
Volume
52
Issue
3
ISSN
0194-472X
DOI
10.1111/jmft.70146
Keywords
acceptance, couples, intimacy, metaphor, patterns, relationship health
Repository Citation
Rice, Jenna; Fraher, Sarah; Engelkamp, Elizabeth; McTernan, Melissa; Grigorian, Hannah; and Cordova, James, "Examining the Effectiveness of Nature Metaphor Patterns for Cultivating Intimacy, Acceptance, Relationship Satisfaction, Self-Compassion, and Positive Communication in Couples" (2026). Psychology. 995.
https://commons.clarku.edu/faculty_psychology/995
Cross Post Location
Student Publications
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Copyright Conditions
Rice, J., Fraher, S., Engelkamp, E., McTernan, M., Grigorian, H., & Cordova, J. (2026). Examining the Effectiveness of Nature Metaphor Patterns for Cultivating Intimacy, Acceptance, Relationship Satisfaction, Self‐Compassion, and Positive Communication in Couples. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 52(3), e70146.
