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“A much-needed book addressing not only the needs of gay men in couples therapy, but also the therapist's and client's homophobia and perceptions of the potential staying power of gay couples....The enriching aspect of this book is how the authors take you through a child or adolescent's development, from his initial discovery that he is gay through the ensuing trauma that is usually endured alone, and how he is deprived of a relational context in which his authentic emotional self can emerge and grow....useful to all levels of couple/relationship therapists. Beginning therapists may still benefit from the review of structural couples therapy in general, and especially as it pertains to working with gay men in the context of couples therapy....Many case examples of both heterosexual and gay couples help illustrate the similarities and differences of using structural therapy with gay couples....a roadmap in writing a new script for how we deal with gay couples.”

—Journal of Couple & Relationship Therapy


“This masterful book—grounded in vivid case examples—gives readers a clear theoretical framework and a 'how-to' guide for intervening actively with gay male couples in therapy. Whereas almost all previous works deal only with the intrapsychic dynamics of the individual partners, this one goes much further, shining a bright light on couple-level processes. The integration of family systems, gender socialization, and gay identity development theories is brilliant!”

—Robert-Jay Green, PhD, Distinguished Professor Emeritus, California School of Professional Psychology, Alliant International University


“A breakthrough book. Greenan and Tunnell eloquently describe a clear and compassionate model of therapy that is applicable to gay and straight couples alike, while demonstrating enormous sensitivity to the particular issues confronting gay couples in a homophobic culture. Telling the powerful and poignant stories of gay men courageously building their lives together, Couple Therapy with Gay Men is a superb teaching book about the art of couples treatment. I highly recommend it.”

—David Treadway, PhD, private practice, Harvard Massachusetts


“This book is a much-needed addition to the literature on treating lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. If you think gay couples are just like any other couples, Greenan and Tunnell will change your thinking. As they reveal, gay couples face unique challenges and bring unique strengths to their intimate relationships. Couple Therapy with Gay Men is the perfect place to start your education about how to make therapy relevant and helpful for these clients.”

—Laura Markowitz, former Senior Editor, Psychotherapy Networker

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Table of Contents

1. The Marginalization of Gay Male Couples

2. Implications for Man-to-Man Closeness from Growing Up Gay

3. An Overview of Structural Family Therapy

4. Joining with Male Couples

5. Enactments: Identifying Complementary Roles

6. Unbalancing: Discovering New Steps

7. A Case Study: Male Couples and Connectedness

8. Toward the Future

References

Index

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About the Authors

David E. Greenan, EdD, is Executive Director of The Minuchin Center for the Family, where he teaches family therapy and consults to agencies that serve inner-city poor families. He is also a psychologist and family therapist in private practice in New York City.

• Author's website

Gil Tunnell, PhD, is a clinical psychologist in full-time private practice in New York City. He supervises and trains psychiatric residents and psychology interns in family therapy at Beth Israel Medical Center.

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Audience

Clinicians who treat couples; students in couple and family therapy, clinical and counseling psychology, psychiatry, clinical social work, and nursing.

Serves as a text in clinically oriented graduate-level courses.

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Course Use

Serves as a text in clinically oriented graduate-level courses.