Intimacy and Power in Long-Term Relationships: A Gestalt Therapy-Systems Perspective

I n our society today, many view the ability to create, manage, and nurture long-term intimate relationships as the primary prerequisite for happiness and well-being (Schaefer &

Olson, 1981). Furthermore, an increasing number of psychotherapists and developmental theorists also perceive the capacity to relate to an other on equal terms as the essence of maturity. At the same time, our high interpersonal anxiety and catastrophic divorce rates reflect the difficulty of creating and sustaining intimate relationships.