What intervention should the therapist introduce if a couple is having trouble understanding each other's position behind a conflict issue?

The intervention known as the Gottman-Rapoport is particularly effective when a couple is struggling to comprehend each other's viewpoints in the context of a conflict. This technique is designed to enhance understanding by prompting each partner to articulate their perspective clearly and to listen actively to their partner's position without interruption.

The method itself encourages empathy and validation, as one partner speaks while the other reflects back their understanding, facilitating a deeper insight into each other's feelings and reasoning. By using the Gottman-Rapoport technique, couples can bridge communication gaps and make sense of the underlying emotions and needs that drive their conflict.

In contrast, other interventions such as the Aftermath of a Fight focus more on processing conflict after it occurs, Love Maps emphasize building a deeper emotional connection through knowledge of each other's histories and preferences, and the Gottman Repair Checklist provides strategies to repair interactions during conflicts. While these approaches are valuable in their own right, they are not specifically tailored to enhancing understanding of differing positions during a current conflict, which reinforces the effectiveness of the Gottman-Rapoport intervention in this scenario.