As negotiators, disengaged couples are prime candidates for win-win outcomes because their divorce anxiety is far less than in enmeshed or autistic couples. Often they have considered divorce for at least a year before getting to the negotiation stage under circumstances such as the following:
o The divorce action may already have been filed, o They have attempted reconciliation and failed, o They have seen a therapist together, o They no longer have strong feelings of anger or affection for the other spouse.
Now that they are disengaged from each other, their strongest mutual feeling is to avoid using lawyers to avoid escalating conflict. They are calm, pleasant and courteous with each other and are ready to move on with their separate lives.

Of the four types of couples one sees in the divorcing process, the last two, the "direct-conflict" couple and the "disengaged" couple, have the best chance at negotiating successful "win-win" outcomes.

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