In therapeutic processes there are many phenomena that, at an unconscious level, influence and direct the conditioning process. If these phenomena are not adequately addressed, the therapy may not produce the desired effects on the patient. Countertransference is one of the effects that, among others, can divert the proper development of the therapeutic process.
In the next Psychology-Online article, we will talk about what is countertransference in psychologycomparing it with the more well-known term transference, we will expose the effects it has on the therapeutic process and we will address the need to incorporate the therapist’s own self-analysis as an essential process to achieve good results in their psychotherapeutic work.
What is countertransference
To understand what countertransference is in psychology, we must first emphasize what it is, a phenomenon that arose with Freud and the .
Specifically, transference refers to a psychological process, which usually occurs in all types of human relationships, through which a person relives affections or emotions from primary bonds with different people in their current relationships. This process is unconscious in most cases and governs a good part of our behaviors and interpersonal relationships.
Within the therapeutic process, transference arises when the patient relives before the therapist primary relationships with people who left an important mark in their past. That is how the patient transfers lived relationships and affects onto the therapist previously with prominent figures for him, mainly his parents.
Meaning of countertransference
Countertransference in psychology is a phenomenon framed exclusively within the therapeutic approach, since it refers to the unconscious transference processes that the therapist himself emits on his patient. You could say that its name is due to the fact that it is the opposite and expected process of the transference during the therapeutic process. In this case, It is the therapist who transfers his unconscious emotions onto the patient.
For Freud, both processes are inevitable as they involve the unconscious manifestation of our . The difference between both concepts lies in the fact that the transference is used by the therapist as a useful tool within the therapeutic process to work on these feelings with the patient. The countertransference, for its part, must necessarily be prepared by the therapist himself through its own and continued analysis to prevent it from negatively interfering with the therapy.
Types of countertransference
Countertransference can have two main effects on the therapy process. Let’s see what the types of countertransference are and their consequences:
- Unconscious countertransference: can interfere with the patient’s adequate progress in different ways. On the one hand, the interpretations that the therapist returns to the patient may be erroneous as they are not exactly related to the patient’s reality. On the other hand, certain positive feelings beyond the therapeutic relationship can complicate the clinical relationship and those towards the patient can worsen their current personal situation, etc.
- conscious countertransference: Two benefits occur mainly as a consequence of this process of personal introspection. Firstly, it avoids the negative effects that arise from not becoming aware of this countertransference process and properly redirects the process. Furthermore, you also grow personally as a result of this new step of personal knowledge and, consequently, improve your knowledge and experience as a psychotherapist.
Examples of countertransference
Now that we have seen the consequences of countertransference on the therapeutic process, below, we will present examples of countertransference with respect to the two resolutions mentioned above:
Unconscious countertransference
On the one hand, an example of unconscious countertransference could be when the therapist transfers feelings of rejection onto his patient. If when it happens you are not aware of it and, unconsciously, your interpretations of the different situations that the patient exposes during therapy are loaded with certain degrees of contempt, rejection, opposition, etc.
conscious countertransference
If we talk about examples of conscious countertransference, in this case, the therapist also transfers this feeling of rejection onto his patient, but becomes aware of it and investigates within itself about the meaning and origin of the same. After understanding his unconscious reaction to his patient, due to his own unconscious reactions whose origin dates back to his own childhood, he chooses to resolve this unfinished business and close it.
From here on, this aspect no longer arises in your process with the patient or if it does arise it is conveniently addressed and rejected. In this way, the therapist listens and empathizes in a more pure and authentic way with the experience narrated by the patient.
How to work on countertransference in the therapeutic process
As mentioned in the previous section, countertransference processes They occur inevitably in any therapeutic process while psychotherapists, like other people, are conditioned by unconscious primary elements derived from their childhood experiences.
Given this, as psychodynamic and humanistic therapies share, it is essential incorporate the psychotherapist’s self-analysis process as part of the therapy process if good results are to be achieved with the patients treated.
Otherwise, and as exemplified in the previous section, the therapist’s own shortcomings and unconscious emotional reactions will cause interference in the correct and adequate development of the therapy. In this article, you will find more information about .
This article is merely informative, at Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.
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Bibliography
- Castanedo Secadas, C. (2008). Six psychotherapeutic approaches. Modern manual. Mexico.