FYI, the network formerly known as the Biography Channel, has lately become laser-focused on couples who meet cute or strange. Since its rebranding last year, it’s offered “Married at First Sight,” in which experts pair couples who first meet at the altar, and are then documented in their early weeks of marriage; the docu-series “Arranged,” about arranged marriages in various cultures; and “Find My First Love,” in which a lovelorn woman consents to be dragged to unlikely places to reconnect with the one that got away.  All of these shows are about atypical ways of finding a partner, as if meeting someone were the hard part.  FYI’s “Seven Year Switch,” which has its debut on Tuesday, sets out to fix the other problem: maintaining a strong union when your relationship is broken. Two sets of couples, married for varying lengths of time, switch partners and are then isolated for two weeks, the thinking being that you can best learn about what you need communicating with someone different from — and more sympathetic than — your spouse.  Here, as on “Married at First Sight,” ostensible experts do the steering: in this case, it’s a pair of extravagantly dull clinical psychologists, Dr. Jessica and Dr. Dan. They call their strategy “switch therapy.” It could also be called “Wife Swap” (ABC, 2004-13) or “Celebrity Wife Swap” (ABC, 2012-present) or “Trading Spouses” (Fox, 2004-7).  Those shows emphasized the dynamics of parenting as much as those of a relationship, whereas the pairs on “Seven Year Switch” have no children. That means there’s less on the line, and more opportunity for disruption. The new couples settle into plush, well-appointed homes in Los Angeles, and the show’s bad faith begins in earnest: There’s only one bed.  “We’re introducing an awkward moment, an opportunity for these couples to start to use communication to negotiate,” Dr. Jessica explains, giving a professional veneer to a low trick and fooling no one.  This contrivance is a clear inducement to infidelity, especially for Neal and Leah, who’ve been unfaithful to each other already. Most of the tension in the first episode — the new couples don’t meet until the second half of the two-hour premiere — comes from Neal and his new partner, the timid Aleshia. In voice-over, the show announces, “Neal has been paired with Aleshia because she is beautiful and accommodating.” He’s the only one of the eight participants who immediately indicates he’s open to sharing a bed.  “Switch” is directed with all the verve of a corporate training video, so even the most uncomfortable moments don’t quite sting. The subdued tone and pace never match the anxiety that comes with the fact that actual marriages might be on the line here. And thus far, the show has done little to explore why these couples might be struggling — for example, why Danielle, with her rigid, taskmaster personality, would choose to marry Eric, a warmhearted goof.  If these couples end up repaired and healed, so much the better. If not, one can only assume a new slate of shows is already in development, focusing on people just out of failed marriages. Some suggested titles: “Take a Ring Off It,” “Aisle 2: The Cleanup,” “Old Fish, New Pond.”  A version of this review appears in print on July 7, 2015, on page C4 of the New York edition with the headline: Nice to Meet You. We’re Sharing a Bed? . Order Reprints| Today's Paper|Subscribe
This show on FYI splits up struggling couples, gives them new partners and puts them in a house with only one bed.