Therapists use many names for their work, and several approaches deal directly with how people relate. This article describes the main ones and says what each has mainly been studied for.
One caution applies throughout. The research gathered for this guide found no trial of individual therapy whose main outcome was relationship patterns, attachment style or relationship satisfaction. Gurman and Burton (2014) call individual therapy for couple problems "this very important but largely neglected topic." The evidence below is borrowed from trials of other problems.
Does the type of therapy matter?
Less than the labels suggest, on average. The American Psychological Association's 2012 resolution on psychotherapy effectiveness says "different forms of psychotherapy typically produce relatively similar outcomes." It adds that "patient and therapist characteristics, which are not usually captured by a patient's diagnosis or by the therapist's use of a specific psychotherapy, affect the results."
Approaches still differ in what they ask of you and where they look: at the past or the present, at understanding or at practicing skills, at relationships outside the room or the one inside it. Those differences can matter for what suits you.
What is the evidence for psychodynamic therapy?
This is the family of approaches Dr. Rabin's page describes. As her page puts it, the work traces how early relationships shape present connections and uses the therapy relationship itself as a place to notice patterns as they happen.
A 2023 umbrella review by Leichsenring and colleagues, who are psychodynamic researchers, found "High quality evidence in depressive and somatic symptom disorders and moderate quality evidence in anxiety and personality disorders" that psychodynamic therapy does better than control conditions in reducing symptoms. On moderate-quality evidence, it was "as efficacious as other active therapies in these disorders." The authors note limitations such as risk of bias, which they call comparable to those of other evidence-based psychotherapies.
Critics have questioned how such reviews are done. Commenting on an earlier review in 2011, Thombs and colleagues wrote that "Many meta-analyses, however, are not performed rigorously, which can result in treatment efficacy estimates that obscure important intertrial differences and that are unlikely to be replicated in clinical practice." None of these trials measured relationship patterns as the main outcome.
Is long-term psychodynamic therapy better than shorter therapy?
The research disagrees, and it is fair to say so. A 2011 meta-analysis by Leichsenring and Rabung of 10 controlled studies, in people with what it called complex mental disorders, found results in favor of long-term psychodynamic therapy over less intensive therapy. The authors wrote that dose-effect data "suggest that short-term psychotherapy is insufficient for many patients with chronic distress or personality disorders."
A 2012 meta-analysis of 11 trials by Smit and colleagues reached a different view: "the recovery rate of various mental disorders was equal" after long-term therapy or the comparison treatments, and the evidence was "limited and at best conflicting." Each drew on about ten studies. Smit and colleagues report that results of individual trials varied substantially, and Leichsenring and Rabung write that further research on long-term therapy is needed. Neither review tells you how long your own therapy should be.
What is interpersonal psychotherapy?
Interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT) is "a time-limited, empirically validated treatment for mood disorders," in the words of Markowitz and Weissman (2004). It works on one focal problem area, such as "resolving an interpersonal struggle in a role dispute." Unlike psychodynamic work, "Treatment centers on the patient's outside environment, not on the therapy itself."
A 2016 meta-analysis of 90 studies with 11,434 participants found that IPT for acute depression had moderate-to-large effects compared with control groups and no significant difference from other therapies. The authors note risk of bias in the majority of studies. IPT works on relationships, but its evidence is mainly for depression, not for relationship patterns as such.
What about schema therapy and DBT?
Both are structured approaches whose evidence is mainly in personality disorders.
- Schema therapy "integrates the techniques of cognitive behavior therapy with the depth-oriented and emotion-focused strategies of other approaches," according to the APA Dictionary of Psychology, to change patterns of belief formed from early experiences. A 2023 meta-analysis that included 8 randomized trials with 587 participants found a moderate effect on personality disorder symptoms compared with control conditions.
- Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) "was developed specifically for people with borderline personality disorder," the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) says. It "teaches skills to help people control intense emotions, reduce self-destructive behaviors, and improve relationships."
Describing these approaches does not suggest that anyone reading has a personality disorder. Only a licensed clinician who has evaluated a person can assess that. Neither approach is among those Dr. Rabin's page describes.
Where do CBT and couples methods fit?
A 2012 review of 106 meta-analyses of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) by Hofmann and colleagues concluded that "In general, the evidence-base of CBT is very strong," with "The strongest support" for anxiety disorders, somatoform disorders, bulimia, anger control problems and general stress. That is a research finding. CBT is described here as research, not as part of Dr. Rabin's practice.
Couples methods, such as emotionally focused couple therapy and the Gottman method, are a separate kind of service, and Dr. Rabin does not offer couples therapy. Their evidence is summarized in individual therapy or couples counseling.
What does Dr. Rabin offer?
Dr. Rabin's relationship therapy is individual, psychodynamic and attachment-based. She trained in attachment theory through the Massachusetts Institute for Psychoanalysis and The Trauma Center. It is not couples or marriage counseling.
As this article shows, no approach, hers included, has been tested as a treatment for relationship patterns as such, and researchers disagree about parts of the psychodynamic evidence. If you would prefer a structured skills-based therapy, it is reasonable to ask on a free consultation of about 15 minutes, requested through the contact page, whether her approach fits what you want. Questions to ask a new therapist may help you prepare.
Keep reading
Sources
- Gurman and Burton, Individual therapy for couple problems: perspectives and pitfalls. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy (2014)
- American Psychological Association, Recognition of Psychotherapy Effectiveness (Council resolution, August 2012)
- Leichsenring et al., The status of psychodynamic psychotherapy as an empirically supported treatment for common mental disorders: an umbrella review based on updated criteria. World Psychiatry (2023)
- Thombs et al., Is there room for criticism of studies of psychodynamic psychotherapy? American Psychologist (2011)
- Leichsenring and Rabung, Long-term psychodynamic psychotherapy in complex mental disorders: update of a meta-analysis. British Journal of Psychiatry (2011)
- Smit et al., The effectiveness of long-term psychoanalytic psychotherapy: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Clinical Psychology Review (2012)
- Markowitz and Weissman, Interpersonal psychotherapy: principles and applications. World Psychiatry (2004)
- Cuijpers et al., Interpersonal Psychotherapy for Mental Health Problems: A Comprehensive Meta-Analysis. American Journal of Psychiatry (2016)
- APA Dictionary of Psychology, schema therapy (updated 2018)
- Zhang et al., The efficacy of schema therapy for personality disorders: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Nordic Journal of Psychiatry (2023)
- National Institute of Mental Health, Borderline Personality Disorder (revised 2025)
- Hofmann et al., The Efficacy of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: A Review of Meta-analyses. Cognitive Therapy and Research (2012)
Last reviewed October 2026. This guide is general information, not medical advice or a diagnosis. If you are in danger, call 911. If you are in crisis or thinking about harming yourself, call or text 988.
