ABSTRACT
Not all affairs are alike. Understanding the different types of affairs is critical to understanding the couple’s dynamics that lead to the infidelity. Affairs can be classified based on the underlying dynamics of the couple’s relationship. Specifically, the purpose of the affair is to both cope with a problematic relationship dynamic and to get it out in the open (once the affair is revealed). The second part of the chapter will include a Three-Step Model of Infidelity. This model presents both a simple explanatory model of the factors that contribute to an affair and a treatment model that uses the same three steps to guide treatment, which integrates the typologies as well. Couples who are able to understand the conditions that created the affair, as well as knowing that there is a “roadmap” for recovery, often feel a sense of relief that there is a way to understand the myriad of complex emotions and have hope that treatment and recovery are possible.
