Bordin, E. S. (1979). The generalizability of the psychoanalytic concept of the working alliance. Psychotherapy: Theory, Research & Practice, 16(3), 252-260. Therapist empathic understanding: the therapist experiences an empathic understanding of the client’s internal frame of reference. Accurate empathy on the part of the therapist helps the client believe the therapist’s unconditional love for them.

The Therapeutic Relationship, 2nd Edition | Wiley

What do our therapeutic relationships with clients involve? How do we create a safe space for clients to go exploring? What are we doing when we show clients respect and caring, attuned attention or when we challenge them to grow? How is our way of being with clients therapeutic? These questions around ‘doing’ and ‘being’ all relate to the idea of therapeutic use of self which can be defined as: "A therapist’s thoughtful, deliberate effort to use their self as a tool, one which embodies a self-aware therapeutic way of being in the service of clients and the client-therapist relationship" (Finlay, 2022, p. 1). The therapeutic alliance, or the working alliance may be defined as the joining of a client's reasonable side with a therapist's working or analyzing side. [6] Bordin [7] conceptualized the working alliance as consisting of three parts: tasks, goals and bond. Tasks are what the therapist and client agree need to be done to reach the client's goals. Goals are what the client hopes to gain from therapy, based on their presenting concerns. The bond forms from trust and confidence that the tasks will bring the client closer to their goals. Horvath, A. O., Greenberg, L. (1986). The development of the Working Alliance Inventory: A research handbook. In L. Greenberg and W. Pinsoff (Eds.) Psychotherapeutic Processes: A Research Handbook, New York: Guilford Press.Many clients come to see therapists as the ‘good enough other’ the idea that at some level they emotionally take on the therapist as a ‘parent figure’ to support them during the personal growth that hopefully takes place during therapy, Clarkson described this as ; The concept of therapeutic relationship was described by Freud (1912) as "friendly affectionate feeling" in the form of a positive transference. However, transferences, or more correctly here, the therapist's 'counter-transferences' can also be negative. Today transference (from the client) and counter-transference (from the therapist), is understood as subconsciously associating a person in the present, with a person from a past relationship. For example, you meet a new client who reminds you of a former lover. This would be a counter-transference, in that the therapist is responding to the client with thoughts and feelings attached to a person in a past relationship. Ideally, the therapeutic relationship will start with a positive transference for the therapy to have a good chance of effecting positive therapeutic change. Born in South Africa, she came to England in 1976 and became an authoritative voice in the world of psychotherapy, specifically developing a European perspective of Gestalt therapy. The developmentally needed or reparative relationship is an intentional provision by the psychotherapist of a corrective, reparative, or replenishing relationship or action where the original parenting was deficient, abusive or overprotective”.

The Therapeutic Relationship - Petruska Clarkson - Google Books

This is harder to define in absolute terms; it can include an expansion of consciousness, which can be spiritual or healing. As I understand it the working alliance is the basis of the client–therapist relationship that enables both the client and the therapist to work together and would include such things as the contract, the presenting issues and maybe a realisation of both people that in other circumstances they may not be kindred spirits, or even necessarily like each other. There are some synergies here with Coaching practice with a contracting process, and examination of presenting versus underlying issues; it leads to my sense that Coaching has beg, stole and borrowed from therapeutic theory! Here are some of my personal favourites (the authors have been significant 'teachers' for me) on the topic of therapeutic use of self:For me, therapeutic use of self is all about being a human being in relation with another human being. Its less about applying therapy techniques and more about finding a way to be-with our clients, in patience, curiosity, compassion, caring and challenge, while we go exploring together. In short, we need to move away from a view of the use of self as an internal/individual act towards seeing it as a dynamic, ethical and reflexive process that is profoundly relational. When we ‘go with the relational flow’ and trust the therapeutic process, the use of self is like the playing of a finely tuned musical instrument. Together, client and therapist find themselves immersed in a duet of co-created music. Rogers describes the core conditions of Empathy, Congruence and Unconditional positive regard, as the foundations of building an interpersonal alliance between two people. In terms of “The 5 relationship model,’ the therapist would use these conditions to facilitate the ongoing encounter with the client. In psychoanalysis the therapeutic relationship has been theorized to consist of three parts: the working alliance, transference/ countertransference, and the real relationship. [1] [2] [3] Evidence on each component's unique contribution to the outcome has been gathered, as well as evidence on the interaction between components. [4] In contrast to a social relationship, the focus of the therapeutic relationship is on the client's needs and goals. [5] Therapeutic Alliance / Working Alliance [ edit ] On the 21st of May 2006, Petruska Clarkson, who developed the 5 relationship model, died alone in a hotel room in Amsterdam. She was 58 years old when she took her own life.

The therapeutic relationship - BibGuru Guides Citation: The therapeutic relationship - BibGuru Guides

Qualitative research collects data that describes the quality of experience, while quantitative research gathers data relating to quantity (i.e. facts and figures). Each type of research has its pros and cons, and often the two can be combined for strong research results; a balance is important.

My own perspective is that it is important as a therapist is to have some underlying principles, but to hold them lightly; as Jung said: “learn your theories as well as you can, but put them aside when you touch the miracle of the living soul” . Overall, there are really useful principles of therapeutic practice within Rogers approach that speak to me in my growing and deepening work with clients in psychological coaching