Differentiation

"Differentiation is the ability to stay in connection without being consumed by the other person. Emotional fusion is the opposite of differentiation. Many people make the mistake of thinking of differentiation as the opposite of emotional relationship. Think of differentiation as a 'higher order' process that involves balancing both connection and autonomy, like this

Differentiation

Individuality--------------------------------------------------Emotional Connection

Then you can see that emotional fusion is connection without individuality."

--David Schnarch, Ph. D