Clinical Foundations in Gottman Method Couples Therapy 2025 by Gottman Institute

Duration: 30 Hours
Faculty: Julie Gottman, Ph.D.; John Gottman, Ph.D.

What You Will Learn

• Use evidence-driven approaches to forecast—and strengthen—relationship stability, helping partners build more durable bonds.

• Perform thorough assessments to customize treatment plans, highlighting each couple’s assets and growth areas.

• Apply practical tools to improve conflict skills, deepen friendship, and cultivate shared meaning and purpose.

• Develop advanced mastery in emotion regulation and conflict resolution to elevate your clinical impact.

• Grow your practice by joining the Gottman Referral Network and connecting with clients seeking expert relationship care.

What You Will Get

• A 30-hour program that spans both core foundations and advanced applications of TGI Couples Therapy.

• Flexible, self-paced modules to sharpen your skills on your schedule.

• Research-based assessments, strategies, and interventions to address multiple facets of relationship functioning.

Detailed Information

Included Content

Gottman Method Couples Therapy – Level 1

• 11 hours of video from a recent live workshop taught by Drs. John and Julie Gottman

• 352-page PDF manual covering content, assessments, interventions, and references from the training videos

• 63-page PDF slide deck

• Online quiz

Gottman Method Couples Therapy – Level 2

• 19 hours of video from a recent live workshop with Drs. John and Julie Gottman

• 734-page PDF manual detailing content, measures, interventions, and citations used in the course

• 262-page PDF slide deck

• Online quiz

Audience

Prerequisites: None for Level 1 or Therapy Sessions: Live. Complete Level 1 before beginning Level 2. This training benefits professionals in the following areas:

• Mental health providers

• Allied professionals and clergy

• Students and interns

• Family clinic staff

• Professors/teachers of couples therapy

• Researchers in the social sciences

• Employee assistance professionals

Learning Objectives

Gottman Method Couples Therapy – Level 1

By the end of this training, you will be able to:

• Summarize the research base used to forecast long-term relationship stability.

• Describe the seven levels of the Sound Relationship House framework.

• Conduct a couple assessment using narrative elements, the Oral History Interview, standardized questionnaires, conflict observations, and individual interviews.

• Identify two interventions that strengthen conflict-management skills.

• Identify two interventions that enhance a couple’s friendship system.

• Identify two interventions that explore a couple’s shared meaning system.

• Explain why physiological self-soothing is vital to relational health.

• Create a therapeutic contract, collaborate on goals, and outline strengths and areas for improvement.

• Describe the Philosophy of Therapy, including assumptions, methods, and aims.

• Explain the Rapoport Intervention and appropriate use cases.

• Outline the overall process of therapy and the structure of a typical session.

Gottman Method Couples Therapy – Level 2

By the end of this training, you will be able to:

• Explain observational fundamentals, including recognizing Emotions on the Human Face, vocal tension, word choice, and the SPAFF coding system.

• Describe the seven levels of the Sound Relationship House theory.

• Define Bids and Turning Toward behaviors and how to identify them.

• Explain the components of the first three Assessment sessions.

• Conduct an Oral History Interview and demonstrate the process.

• Conduct a Feedback Session, formulate a Treatment Plan, and present it using the Sound Relationship House model.

• Describe use of core assessment tools (e.g., Locke-Wallace, Weiss-Cerretto, Sound Relationship House Questionnaires, 19 Areas Checklist, EAQ, SCL-90, Detour Scales, CAGE, b-MAST).

• Teach and model the rules for Gentle Start-Up.

• Design interventions that counter the “Four Horsemen.”

• Prepare couples to self-soothe physiologically when flooded.

• Select and implement conflict interventions.

• Apply approaches to transform the “Attack/Defend System” in couple interactions.

• Help partners open dialogue around gridlocked issues.

• Guide couples toward compromise on perpetual problems using the Two Oval method.

• Describe and use the five-step “Aftermath of a Fight” process for repairing regrettable incidents.

• Use the Stress-Reducing Conversation to reduce relapse.

• Choose and apply interventions that deepen the “Friendship System” via Fondness and Admiration.

• Choose and apply interventions that Build Shared Meaning through Rituals of Connection.

• Identify common co-morbidities and develop plans using Gottman assessments and interventions.

• Apply Gottman Method to couples healing from an affair.

• Determine when Gottman Method is appropriate or contraindicated in cases of substance use.

• Apply Gottman Method with couples experiencing PTSD.

• Distinguish situational vs. characterological domestic violence and identify when Gottman Method is appropriate or contraindicated in DV cases.

Faculty

John Gottman, Ph.D.

Recognized worldwide for pioneering work on marital stability and divorce forecasting, Dr. John Gottman has carried out over 40 years of influential research with thousands of couples. He has written more than 200 peer-reviewed articles and is the author or coauthor of 40+ books, including the New York Times bestseller The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work. His research has been featured on Good Morning America, Today, CBS This Morning, and Oprah, as well as in The New York Times, Redbook, Glamour, Woman’s Day, People, Self, and Psychology Today.

Julie Gottman, Ph.D.

Dr. Julie Gottman is the co-founder and President of The Gottman Institute. A widely respected clinical psychologist, she is frequently sought by media and organizations around the world for expertise on marriage, sexual harassment and assault, domestic violence, LGBTQ+ adoption, same-sex marriage, and parenting. She co-created the highly regarded Art and Science of Love weekend workshops for couples and co-designed the national clinical training program in Gottman Method Couples Therapy.