Transference and Countertransference

Analysis of transference in the couple system

Transference refers to the phenomenon whereby patients displace to the therapist feelings, desires and attitudes that originally belonged to significant figures in their past (parents, caregivers).

In couple therapy, this is complicated by the fact that transference is not only individual, but triangular.

One partner may idealize the therapist as the "good parent" he or she never had, seeking to ally with him or her, while the other may perceive him or her as a critical or authoritarian figure, reacting with hostility or distrust. This emotional flow is not static; it fluctuates throughout the treatment.

The therapist must be attentive to these changes: Why am I seen today as a savior and last week as an enemy? Analyzing these projections is vital because they replicate the dynamics that the couple has with each other and with the outside world.

If one constantly seeks the therapist's approval, one is likely to do the same in one's marriage.

Managing Countertransference and Therapist Resonance

Countertransference encompasses the therapist's conscious and unconscious emotional reactions to patients.

In working with couples, it is common to feel affinity for one partner or irritation toward the other.

If these emotions are not analyzed, they can lead to biased interventions or loss of neutrality.

The therapist should ask, "Why does this man's passivity irritate me so much? Does he remind me of someone in my own life?"

A classic example is when the therapist becomes frustrated that the couple is not moving forward and begins to pressure them or feel incompetent.

This may be a response to the partner's resistance, but it may also touch on the practitioner's own issues of demandingness.

Self-awareness is the main tool to avoid acting out these emotions in the session and instead use them as diagnostic data about what the partner is provoking in others.

The analysis of everyday behavior as a source of data.

To understand these dynamics, the psychodynamic approach pays great attention to the "analysis of everyday behavior" or the day-to-day account.

It is not just a matter of listening to anecdotes, but of observing how the patient manages his daily life, his small conflicts, his forgetfulness and his routines.

These microcosmic details often contain the structure of their neurosis and their defense mechanisms.

For example, if a couple repeatedly recounts traffic incidents or minor conflicts with neighbors where they always feel victimized, this informs about their existential position and their probable transference in therapy (feeling attacked by the therapist).

Analyzing these everyday patterns makes it possible to predict and work through resistance before it sabotages treatment.

Summary

Transference involves shifting feelings to significant figures from the past to the therapist directly. In a couple it is triangular, and the therapist may be idealized or perceived as a critical authoritarian figure today.

Countertransference encompasses the therapist's emotional reactions to his patients. Analyzing affinity or irritation avoids biases, using these emotions as diagnostic data on the relational dynamics observed today.

The analysis of daily behavior informs about the existential position of the couple. Observing routines and minor conflicts allows predicting resistances before they sabotage the integral psychological treatment.