The Following Story is brought to you by financial advisor
There is no doubt that the economy is a hot topic in just about every arena of life these days. With so many people facing foreclosures and job loss, the negative impact of financial stress on marriage has become increasingly more apparent. There is a growing body of research that indicates there is an interaction between financial and marital stability. Married couples tend to have greater financial stability over time and financial stress tends to increase conflict and marital dissatisfaction.
In fact, the complex interplay between money and marriage has led academics and policymakers to take a closer look at how to help couples and families cope in these tough economic times. Researchers at Kansas State University held a Financial Therapy Forum in 2008. Understanding the need for more research and effective intervention, KSU has now opened a brand new financial therapy clinic. This clinic combines the services of financial counselors with marriage and family therapists to help couples and families understand the emotional and behavioral patterns that influence their financial decision making.
In keeping with this trend, earlier this year the Treasury Department in conjunction with the US Department for Health and Human Services held a summit on relationship finance as part of their Healthy Relationships and Financial Stability project, a multi-disciplinary initiative to understand and promote healthy families. The end result of this conference was increased awareness and recommendations to develop programs that combine couples communication with financial education. One of the recommendations of this summit was to provide programs that aim to bring financial educators and psychotherapists together in the service of couples and families. One such program is Money 1to1.
Money 1to1 is a program developed by the Association for Financial Counseling, Planning, and Education (AFCPE) to enhance mental health providers' knowledge of financial issues so that they may help couples work together more effectively. The AFCPE, with support from the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority's Investor Education Foundation, has begun providing free training to therapists and mediators across the country in an effort to strengthen the connection between quality relationship counseling and financial counseling. The program is not designed
“Ever couple that has come to our practice in the last six months has mentioned money as one of the primary issues in their relationship. We are running a 6-week group for couples at the end of October using the Money 1to1 materials and are even in the process of developing a similar group for single parents. The collaboration of financial education and sound therapeutic advice has the potential to help so many couples and families; it's just such a concern right now, “says Llouanna Harper, LPC, co-owner of Group Therapy Associates, a counseling practice located in Haymarket, VA.
Therapists participating in the Money 1to1 training learn basic tools to help couples create budgets, assess cash flow, as well as the importance of helping couples talk openly about their goals and the role finances play. The program is not designed to take the place of qualified financial advice but rather to improve relational experts' ability to work with couples around financial issues. Harper explained it this way,
“We believe in a collaborative approach to therapy. While I have learned a great deal from the program, my expertise is in marriage and family therapy, not financial education. Our goal with couples is for them to learn how to communicate effectively about past financial mistakes and set new goals as a team. If they need detailed advice on their finances we encourage them to contact a qualified financial counselor and then use therapy to help them put their new plan into practice.”
Be sure to visitfinancial advisor at the main site!
