Abstract This paper begins with a general idea of self-disclosure by therapists and the importance of keeping the client’s needs first. It covers many aspects of self-disclosure including ethically what to look for in the motives of using self-disclosure with a client. There are other aspects of self-disclosure which include transference and countertransference which are issues which need to be attended to immediately for the therapist to remain objective and not react to a client. Therapists must be cautious in disclosing information and make sure it is relevant to treatment. Beneficence and nonmaleficence are important things to consider when self-disclosing and the therapist must be educated, well trained, and have experience before considering self-disclosure. Also included in this paper are different orientations in relation to self-disclosure. Those orientations include Adlerian therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, feminist therapy, and relational therapy. Although these are only a few orientations,
How Therapist Self-Disclosure And Non-Disclosure Affects Clients”, stated that, “The study results suggest that therapist self‐disclosure has both positive and negative treatment implications.” It depends on how therapeutic the self-disclosure would benefit the client in that given situation, and the client’s receptiveness to what information is given to them; for example, one patient may respond positively to a therapist’s self –disclosure that reveals another safe point of view of an issue, while another patient might feel that therapist’s has over stepped their boundaries. Madill et al. stated that, “These were sometimes attributed to inexperience and sometimes the characteristics of the total situation, such as events from the therapist's personal life” (13). There are times when sharing something from the therapist can help explain an issue that is present during the time of that therapy appointment. Another problem with a therapist’s self-disclosure is that after years of treatment, the therapist can run out of examples to use to clarify a point made during the appointment. Years and years of treatment sometimes cover issues where the therapist, will add something about himself or herself. People who tend to talk for a very long time during therapy can relate on a level that is not crossing the boundaries. In addition, self –disclosure may be a major problem for therapists who live and work in rural communities, because
Self-disclosure is a way of establishing rapport and letting the client know that the therapist empathises with you (Berg, Antonsen, & Binder, 2016). The client was in a point in life where he felt it had minimum direction and was troubled with opening up. The therapist could empathise with the feeling of being lost and having no direction as he had experienced the same struggle. The self-disclosure was used appropriately for helping the client to find a direction in life, as the client was having trouble with having a stable relationship. The client gained insight on the importance of having a direction in life, which could be achieved by the client with long-term relationship or a successful
Essay 1: When is therapist self-disclosure “okay” in group counseling? How would it be used? Elaborate.
Self Disclosure or Silence I think Self Disclosure is a slippery slope because if we let to much about ourselves we can experience a role reversal and if we do not disclose enough we may loose the client. I do think that drawing this line is difficult because as counselors we know the importance of connecting with the client and a shared personal experience is like creating an instant connection with another person. Our experiences give us the ability to empathize more deeply then just trying to put ourselves in someone else situation. I think I would have the most problem with self disclosure because I tend to be very open about my life, and things I have gone through I do not shy from sharing a personal experience. I like to help and
To disclose or not to disclose?, That question usually comes when you start a new relationship with a friend, a boy friend, a new job or any new relationship, but disclosing can also happen with people we have known for a long time or not. Scholars define self-disclosure as sharing information with others that they would not normally know or discover, but I feel like each person has his or her own way of defining what self closure is. To me, self disclosure is letting myself go and trusting the person I am disclosing to, it involves risk and vulnerability on my part sharing important information to someone. Therefore I go back to the question I posed before, do I trust this person or not, do I love this person to feel my vulnerability, do
Self-disclosure is an important part of any close relationship. Without sharing our own fears and weaknesses, we can
In emerging adulthood, many people experience the need to share their personal life with someone else. Erikson name for this crisis is intimacy versus isolation and emerging adults and many older adults know this feeling very well (Berger, 2014, p. 551). As emerging adults begin feeling the need for human connection, friendships and intimate relationships deepen for this reason (Berger, 2014, p. 551). As a senior in high school my friends became an extremely important part of my life, we told each other everything and the need for human connection was evident as I always wanted to be with my friends and share my personal life with them. I had, and currently have, the same 2 friends that I would confide in about boy problems, health
Past experiences of other individuals provide insight on a situation that you might find yourself in. For example, ““I’m a public man,” says Jarvis. “My life is an open book.” And he provides elaborate evidence on why this has benefited him, and says that if everyone followed his lead, the world would be a better place.” (Tapscott 117) Jeff Jarvis shared his person information about his prostate surgery in his book Public Parts. He shared this information because he wanted people to know the details of everything when it comes to prostate surgery. Even though this information might be graphic and embarrassing, Jeff Jarvis still felt the need to share this information to help others through the same situation. Many individuals do not know what to do or how to do it when it comes to very serious medical conditions. With his book, many people may have been helped through a very rough time in their life. Sharing his personal information may have really
The best place to begin is with a definition. Self-disclosure is the process of deliberately revealing information about oneself that is significant and would not naturally be known by others. Self-disclosure must be deliberate.
Running head: SELF-DISCLOSURE, GENDER, AND COMMUNICATION 1 Self- Disclosure, Gender, and Communication Gary Wayne McCoy COM 200 Interpersonal Communications Instructor: Jennifer Chagala February 11, 2012 SELF-DISCLOSURE, GENDER, AND COMMUNICATION 2 “Self-Disclosure, Gender, and Communication” Communication is one of the most important things in our lives. Quality communication in marriage is defined as the interpersonal, transactional, symbolic process by which marriage partners achieve and maintain understanding of each other (Montgomery, 1981). Marriage and communication are far more complicated than it seems. This paper will discuss the self-disclosure in
A third variable that can affect intimacy and self-disclosure is one’s personality. If some one is an extrovert they will likely share more willingly than say a reserved introverted personality type. Of the correlations the mostly is that the more that self-disclosure is implemented the more likely a greater level of intimacy will develop because the more that one shares about themselves a level of trust forms leading to greater levels of familiarity and
Theoretical Discussion Self-disclosure is the voluntary sharing of personal history, preferences, attitudes, feelings, values, secrets, etc. with another person (Griffin, p. 97). As stated in the introduction Altman and Taylor look at relationships as an “onions.” The different layers are representative of different feelings of a person. When
Individuals have different levels of disclosure and when combined with another individual’s disclosure level can have positive or negative outcomes. The decision to communicate can also cause uncertainty within relationships. Prior research was conducted to try and measure what exactly causes the uncertainty and negative results to show up in a relationship. Intimacy, security, problematic events, and irritations are all different elements that can be stronger or weaker in the relationship based on the disclosure (Theiss and Solomon 2006).
The layers of self-disclosure can be identified as layers of an onion. Self-disclosure can be referred to as layers of an onion because in the relationship you peel back a layer at a time. The outer layer of the onion is only superficial communication that is not as intimate and can be seen by any of the public. This communication can include height, weight, where someone works or goes to school, etc. The inner layer of the onion includes more personal communication that is not always seen by the public. This inner layer can include communication that involves a persons goals, values, and beliefs. In a study done in 2012, bloggers tended to stick to the outer layers of the onion when discussing topics in their blogs (Tang). The social penetration theory and social media’s impact on the theory will be expanded upon more later on in the paper.