- inappropriately disclosing personal information.
- offering advice.
- not having boundaries.
- developing strong romantic feelings toward you.
- being overly critical of you.
- being overly supportive of you.
- allowing personal feelings or experiences to get in the way of your therapy.
What are some examples of countertransference?
Warning signs of countertransference
- When a therapist extends the sessions unnecessarily for a client
- Notice avoidance to discuss certain topics with the client.
- Expressing sympathy instead of empathy.
- Too much self-disclosure from the therapist.
- Giving advice to clients instead of allowing them to reach their own conclusion.
- Unwarranted emotional reactions towards a client’s problem
How to handle countertransference properly?
- Your therapist is overly critical of you. ...
- As you deal with difficult situations, your therapist is overly sympathetic to you.
- They provide judgments on situations and people from your life, independent of your opinions.
- Your therapist provides you with advice without letting you arrive at the decisions on your own.
What is transference and why is it so important?
There are three types of transference:
- Positive
- Negative
- Sexualized
What is transference and counter-transference?
Transference and countertransference. In a therapy context, transference refers to redirection of a client's feelings from a significant person to a therapist. Transference is often manifested as an erotic attraction towards a therapist, but can be seen in many other forms such as rage, hatred, mistrust, parentification, extreme dependence,...
What is countertransference example?
Examples of Countertransference For example, a therapist may meet with a person who has extreme difficulty making conversation. The therapist may begin, unwittingly, to lead the conversation and provide additional prompts to the person in treatment to encourage discussion.
What are signs of countertransference?
Four signs of countertransference are:Failing to maintain healthy boundaries.Extreme emotional reactions to your behavior.Inappropriate romantic or sexual behavior.Inappropriate self-disclosure.
What are the types of countertransference?
However, an account of problematic countertransferences might prove useful. Victor Altshul and I identified three kinds of problematic countransferences. These are the turning away countertransference, activated countertransference, and unconscious enactment.
What is transference and countertransference examples?
Transference is subconsciously associating a person in the present with a past relationship. For example, you meet a new client who reminds you of a former lover. Countertransference is responding to them with all the thoughts and feelings attached to that past relationship.
How do therapists deal with countertransference?
Therapists also may deal with countertransference by seeking out their own therapy to help them address issues creating countertransference. In addition, they may gain personal awareness in their treatment and learn areas that they need to improve on.
What is transference countertransference?
Transference occurs when the patient brings strong feelings associated with an important past relationship into therapy and onto their therapist. Often this is an unconscious act. The relationship between a patient and therapist is the core of any type of therapy.
What are the two types of countertransference?
Post-Jungians such as Fordham7 have gone on to distinguish between two types of countertransference: the illusory and the syntonic. The illusory is stirred up in the therapist's unconscious from unresolved issues and conflicts in her own psyche.
What is reactive countertransference?
Reactive countertransferences are the therapist's responses to the impact of strong emotions directed toward him by the patient. The induced countertransference is an empathetic process, a suggestive influence that goes from the patient toward the therapist.
Is there positive countertransference?
There are two types of countertransference: negative and positive. Positive countertransference may be used to some benefit in a therapist-client relationship.
How do you address a countertransference?
How to Deal with Countertransference: Recognize it. Countertransference can easily happen no matter how seasoned a mental health provider is or how long they have been in the field. ... Consult with Colleagues. ... Self-Care. ... Refer Your Client Out.
What is the impact of countertransference?
Destructive countertransference patterns can have a significant and pervasive effect on the counseling relationship. They can erode any sense of trust or rapport that may have developed between counselor and client.
What are the three types of transference?
There are three types of transference:Positive.Negative.Sexualized.
How do you address a countertransference?
How to Deal with Countertransference: Recognize it. Countertransference can easily happen no matter how seasoned a mental health provider is or how long they have been in the field. ... Consult with Colleagues. ... Self-Care. ... Refer Your Client Out.
What is the difference of transference and countertransference?
Countertransference is essentially the reverse of transference. In contrast to transference (which is about the client's emotional reaction to the therapist), countertransference can be defined as the therapist's emotional reaction to the client.
How do you tell if your therapist is attracted to you?
So, to answer the question, “Is my therapist attracted to me?”– the context of their actions is crucial. The actions may include a shift in boundaries, such as allowing sessions to go overtime or taking your calls between sessions, or if they appear to seek out opportunities to touch you deliberately.
What is the difference between transference and countertransference?
In a therapy context, transference refers to redirection of a patient's feelings for a significant person to the therapist. Countertransference is defined as redirection of a therapist's feelings toward a patient , or more generally , as a therapist's emotional entanglement with a patient.
Why is countertransference important?
Why is transference and countertransference important? The countertransference definition can be thought of as the clinician's response to a client's transference. Countertransference is an excellent reminder that clinicians are human beings with feelings and emotions.
What are some examples of countertransference?
Examples of Countertransference. For example, a therapist may meet with a person who has extreme difficulty making conversation. The therap ist may begin, unwittingly, to lead the conversation and provide additional prompts to the person in treatment to encourage discussion. Click to see full answer. In this manner, what is transference and ...
What is a therapist's role in your life?
Your therapist is overly critical of you. As you deal with difficult situations, your therapist is overly sympathetic to you. They provide judgments on situations and people from your life, independent of your opinions. Your therapist provides you with advice without letting you arrive at the decisions on your own.
What is counter transfer?
The American Psychological Association (APA) defines counter-transference as a reaction to the client or client's transference, 1 which is when the client projects their own conflicts onto the therapist. Transference is a normal part of psychodynamic therapy. However, it's the therapist’s job to recognize counter-transference ...
What does it mean when a therapist has an inappropriate emotional response to a client?
This might look like: An unreasonable dislike for the client or excessive positive feelings about the client. Becoming over-emotional and preoccupied with the client's case between sessions.
What to do if you think your therapist is experiencing counter-transference?
What to Do. If you think your therapist is experiencing counter-transference, you can bring it up with them if and when the time feels right. Your therapist should be receptive to your concern. If you're feeling uncomfortable, and that counter-transference is getting in the way of effective therapy, it may be time to move on to a new practitioner. ...
What is the objective of a therapist?
Objective: The therapist's reaction to their client's maladaptive behaviors is the cause. This can benefit the therapeutic process. Positive: The therapist is over-supportive, trying too hard to befriend their client, and disclosing too much. This can damage the therapeutic relationship.
What are the manifestations of counter-transference?
Three of these can potentially harm the therapeutic relationship. Subjective: The therapist's own unresolved issues are the cause. This can be harmful if not detected. Objective: The therapist's reaction to their client's maladaptive behaviors is the cause.
Why is counter-transference important in a therapist?
Counter-transference is especially common in novice therapists, so supervisors pay close attention and help them become more self-aware. The mental health community supports seasoned clinicians by urging them to seek peer review and supervisory guidance as needed.
When was counter transfer first used?
History of Counter-Transference. Sigmund Freud first described counter-transference in 1910. Attitudes of the concept have changed over time. Freud first defined it as being in reaction to transference from a client, and it was thought of as largely detrimental to therapy.
How to manage transference and countertransference?
Some ways to manage transference and countertransference in therapy include the following. 1. Peer support. Consult a colleague, supervisor, or clinical director when feeling an emotional trigger or response. When a session is especially challenging, it can cause a therapist to sacrifice empathy and objectivity.
What is transference in therapy?
Transference in therapy is the act of the client unknowingly transferring feelings about someone from their past onto the therapist. Freud and Breuer (1895) described transference as the deep, intense, and unconscious feelings that develop in therapeutic relationships with patients. They analyzed transference in order to account for distortions in ...
What is positive transference?
There are three main categories of transference. Positive transference is when enjoyable aspects of past relationships are projected onto the therapist. This can allow the client to see the therapist as caring, wise, and empathetic, which is beneficial for the therapeutic process.
What is countertransference in social work?
The Social Work Dictionary defines “countertransference” as a set of conscious or unconscious emotional reactions to a client experienced by a social worker or professional , and has established specific ethical issues to consider in practice (Barker, 2014).
What does it mean when a client lashes out?
When clients lash out with anger or distress in a way that seems excessive for the topic that is being discussed, it is a clear sign that transference may be taking place.
What is defense mechanism?
Within psychoanalytic theory, defense mechanisms are behaviors that create “safe” distance between individuals and unpleasant events, actions, thoughts, or feelings (Horacio, 2005).
Is countertransference bad for therapy?
As mentioned, transference and countertransference are not necessarily bad for the therapeutic process. The key to ensuring that transference remains an effective tool for therapy is for the therapist to be aware of when it is happening. 1. Unnecessarily strong (or inappropriate) emotions.
What is the difference between transference and countertransference?
The difference between transference and countertransference is transference is the projection of a client onto another person in their life or the therapist whereas countertransference is the projection of feelings and personal experiences onto the client.
How does psychoanalysis help with stress?
The only way it can do good is by understanding how transference and countertransference works and how we can use it practically to benefit our mental health.
What is countertransference therapy?
Instead of the client transferring their own feelings onto other people or situations, countertransference is when the redirection of the therapist’s own experiences onto their client. It is essential for the therapist to stay neutral during their sessions so as not to cloud their client with biased ideas.
What does a therapist suggest to a client?
The therapist suggests to the client to start journaling or diarizing his or her experiences every night at home to gain some perspective when read later on.
What is transference in psychoanalysis?
Ultimately, transference is when a person projects their feelings onto another person according to their own feelings based on past experiences.
What is paternal transference?
Paternal Transference. This is when the client sees and relates to their therapist in a fatherly manner. They associate their own feelings with the therapist, according to the kind of relationship they had with their father.
Why is transference helpful?
Transference in this case could be helpful for the therapist as well as the client in a way that brings to light the root cause of certain aspects that cause negative thoughts or behaviors. The therapist could take note of any anxieties and follow that lead.
Transference vs. Countertransference
Transference occurs when the patient brings strong feelings associated with an important past relationship into therapy and onto their therapist. Often this is an unconscious act. The relationship between a patient and therapist is the core of any type of therapy.
What Is Transference
Transference can include positive or negative aspects of previous relationships. In their article on transference, experts Patricia Hughes and Ian Kerr further define transference as being “at least partly inappropriate to the present. It is the transfer of a relationship, not a person.
What Is Countertransference?
Countertransference occurs when a therapist loses all objectivity regarding their patient. John E. Schowalter, MD, describes it as “the unconscious influence that a therapist’s past needs and conflicts have on their understanding, actions, or reactions within the treatment situation.” 5
Final Thoughts on Transference vs. Countertransference
Doctors are responsible for the control of transference and countertransference since patients don’t have a conscious perception of it. 6 There are circumstances where transference and countertransference can offer a positive outcome for patients if it’s handled effectively.
Additional Resources
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What Is Countertransference?
Countertransference is a therapist’s reactions and feelings toward a client in therapy. 1 These reactions may be conscious or unconscious and can involve positive or negative reactions like anger, irritation, jealousy, or admiration.
Transference vs. Countertransference
While countertransference is a therapist’s reactions to a client, transference is when a client projects their feelings from another person in their life onto their therapist. 7 For example, a client may have felt rejected by their parents growing up, and when their therapist cancels an appointment, they re-experience that feeling.
4 Warning Signs of Countertransference
Good therapists will make an effort to acknowledge their countertransference with their clients and understand their feelings so that they don’t interfere with treatment. As a client, there are signs that you can look for that may indicate that your therapist’s countertransference is interfering or becoming problematic.
11 Examples of Countertransference
Therapists are required to act ethically and in the best interest of their clients 3 A therapist who is having countertransference and is unaware of it may behave in problematic ways. They may cross boundaries, fail to manage their emotional reactions, and in severe cases, act inappropriately with clients.
How to Deal With Countertransference
Countertransference isn’t bad if your therapist is aware of it and making efforts to prevent it from interfering with your treatment. However, if you suspect that your therapist is having problematic countertransference, you have a right to express your concerns.
Final Thoughts on Countertransference
Countertransference isn’t necessarily bad, but can become problematic when it interferes with a therapist’s ability to be objective or leads to harmful or unethical behaviors. If trying to talk with your therapist about their countertransference doesn’t feel helpful, consider finding a new therapist. Your therapist may even suggest this.
What is countertransference in therapy?
Countertransference is the therapist’s counterpart to the client’s transference. Freud conceptualized the therapist’s countertransference as his or her feelings and reactions to the client’s transference that are a result of his or her own unresolved unconscious conflicts. For example, a therapist whose father was extremely competitive with him may have intensely competitive feelings toward a competitive client. From Freud’s perspective, countertransference reactions were an obstacle to therapy and the therapist’s task was to analyze or work through his or her own countertransference in personal supervision, analysis, or self-analysis.
What was Freud's countertransference reaction?
From Freud’s perspective, countertransference reactions were an obstacle to therapy and the therapist’s task was to analyze or work through his or her own countertransference in personal supervision, analysis, or self-analysis.
Why should countertransference reactions be avoided?
As early as 1910, Freud noted that the therapist's countertransference reactions should be avoided because the distortion creates a significant obstruction to psychoanalysis (Betan and Westen, 2009; Wolitzky, 2011 ). Psychoanalysts have refined their understanding of countertransference over the past century.
What is an intensely negative countertransference?
An intensely negative countertransference is also a form of activated countertransference. Intense hatred or strong negative feelings allude to a special importance in the therapist's mental life filled by the patient. Activated countertransference carries the burden and seduction of a compulsion to take action.
What happens if counter-transference hate is not recognized?
If counter-transference hatred is not recognized, the hateful feelings will be repressed and/or projected elsewhere. Watts and Morgan (1994) have described the defences used to avoid knowledge of counter-transference hate as including repression, reaction formation, projection and distortion/denial (see defence mechanisms in Ch. 37 ):
What is counter transfer?
The concept of counter-transference, like that of transference, is rooted in the notion of resistance. Freud, throughout his career, never recognized the value of counter-transference as an indicator of the patient's subjective state ( Freud, 1912 ).
Is countertransference idiosyncratic or idiosyncratic?
While countertransference will inevitably be idiosyncratic as it is based on the therapist’s unconscious as well as the patient’s conduct, there have been efforts to predict countertransference. Researchers have looked at the relations between typical negative countertransferences and patient personality types.
What is positive transference?
Positive transference refers to the type of countertransference that happens when your therapist expresses positive emotions toward you. This may feel good to you, at least for a while, but it can seriously disrupt your therapy. Your therapist’s job is not to judge you, either negatively or positively.
What is the difference between countertransference and transference?
Sigmund Freud developed the concepts of transference and countertransference. Transference refers to what happens when you as a client transfer your feelings of anger, love, or other intense feelings onto your psychotherapist. Countertransference is when your therapist transfers such feelings onto you.
What is countertransference in social work?
Countertransference happens when the social workerdirects their feelings about someone they know, such as their parent, child, or spouse, onto their client. So, for example, a social worker who is upset with their child might direct thoseangry feelings at you if you remind them of their child.
What happens if you have countertransference?
If they do, it can exert an inappropriate influence on your thoughts or beliefs. Therapists who exhibit countertransference are not giving you the therapy you need to address your challenges. If they superimpose their emotions onto you, it only adds to your problems.
What to do if you don't feel right with a therapist?
The right therapist is out there for you. If you are meeting with a therapist and things don't feel right, don't be afraid to find someone new. Your therapy is about you and making the progress that you're looking for. Take the first step.
What do you need a therapist for?
You need a therapist who can set aside their life situations, unresolved past, and emotions, and focus on helping you get the support you need . Your therapist is not there to be your friend, your parent, or your judge. When they take on any of these roles, they are not doing you a favor.
What is the purpose of therapy?
The purpose of therapy is to find ways to cope with and recover from the challenges you face. The goal is to improve your life. If your therapist is getting in the way of that progress, a change is needed. Trust your instincts and follow your gut. If things don't "feel" right, then there is a good chance they aren't.
What Is Counter-Transference?
Warning Signs of Counter-Transference
- How does a therapist know they are experiencing counter-transference? If you are a client, how do you know if your therapist is exhibiting the signs of it? If you're concerned about the presence of counter-transference in your therapeutic relationship, be aware of these warning signs.
Impact on Therapy
- While it was originally a psychoanalytic concept, counter-transference has been adopted and is used in other forms of therapy today.1Although it's important for your therapist to guard against feelings of counter-transference toward you, counter-transference as also been found to be beneficial. In a systematic review of 25 counter-transference studies, researchers found an asso…
What to Do
- If you think your therapist is experiencing counter-transference, you can bring it up with them if and when the time feels right. Your therapist should be receptive to your concern. If you're feeling uncomfortable, and that counter-transference is getting in the way of effective therapy, it may be time to move on to a new practitioner. Therapists can also take steps to manage counter-transf…
History of Counter-Transference
- Sigmund Freudfirst described counter-transference in 1910. Attitudes of the concept have changed over time. Freud first defined it as being in reaction to transference from a client, and it was thought of as largely detrimental to therapy. However, this thinking changed around the 1950s, when counter-transference started to be viewed as something that could be positive. Th…
A Word from Verywell
- Counter-transference is common, and it's not always a bad thing. If you think this is something that might be affecting your therapeutic relationship, feel empowered to bring it up with your therapist. If having that conversation makes you feel uneasy, that's understandable. But it might mean it is time to move on and find a therapist who is a better fit for you.