Helping Couples on the Brink of Divorce

William J. Doherty, PhD, is a professor emeritus in the University of Minnesota’s Department of Family Social Science and cofounder of the Doherty Relationship Institute. Dr. Doherty has authored 16 books for professionals and the lay public. He has served as president of the National Council on Family Relations and received the Lifetime Career Award from the American Family Therapy Academy. He also cofounded Braver Angels, a nonprofit working on bridge building in a divided country. Steven M. Harris, PhD, LMFT, is a professor in the University of Minnesota’s Department of Family Social Science. He has been practicing as a marriage and family therapist for over 30 years. He was editor-in-chief of the Journal of Marital and Family Therapy and serves as the director of the Minnesota Couples on the Brink Project. He was awarded the Legacy Award by the National Council on Family Relations-Family Therapy Section in 2024. Dr. Harris is the author of over 90 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters and is the coauthor of Should I Try to Work It Out?

• An Introduction to Working With Mixed-Agenda CouplesPart I. Overview and Foundations of Discernment CounselingChapter 1. Overview of Discernment CounselingChapter 2. Theoretical and Research BackgroundPart II. Methods of Discernment CounselingChapter 3. Intake ProceduresChapter 4. First Session ProtocolChapter 5. Middle Sessions ProtocolChapter 6. Handling Transitions to Couples Therapy (Path 3)Chapter 7. Handling Transitions to Separation/Divorce (Path 2)Chapter 8. Handling Transitions to the Status Quo (Path 1)Chapter 9. Full Case Illustration of Discernment CounselingPart III. Common Scenarios in Discernment CounselingChapter 10. When Neither Partner Is Leaning InChapter 11. When One Partner Has an AffairChapter 12. When the Feelings Are GoneChapter 13. Shifting from Couple Therapy to Discernment CounselingPart IV. Becoming a Discernment CounselorChapter 14. Learning Discernment CounselingChapter 15. Building a Specialty Practice in Discernment CounselingReferencesIndexAbout the Authors