Having a trusting and professional therapeutic relationship between therapist and client is extremely important in achieving the successful treatment of an individual. A therapist, who is well trained with a highly knowledgeable background in psychological theories and practices, would find their practices ineffective if a positive therapeutic relationship was unable to be met and maintained. The maintenance of this relationship also comes with challenges, such as the possible development of sexual and loving feelings experienced from both parties. A good therapist is a person that a client can share their deepest pain and personal thoughts with, so it is not surprising that this sort of relationship can often lead to feelings of love and attraction. This essay will explore in further detail the importance of the therapeutic relationship in the clinical setting, along with issues that can arise, casual and protective factors, and finally an outline of the importance of how education and research into this field can improve therapy as a whole for both therapist and patient alike.
Firstly, let’s take a deeper look into exactly what the ‘therapeutic relationship’ entails and what importance it has in assessment and intervention in a clinical practice. The therapeutic relationship, also known as the helping or working alliance (Priebe, Richardson, Cooney, Adedji & McCabe, 2010), is based on the interactions shared by therapist and patient from the moment of first meeting, and
Yalom, explains how relationship problems display themselves in the therapy room, feelings are brought into the here and now.
The whole reason for a therapeutic relationship is to facilitate a successful patient outcome. Each person is unique and has different needs.
There are many ways of forming a relationship and gaining the trust and respect of the patient and I had to work out the different things that make a good therapeutic relationship. According to Hinchliff et al (2003) there are a number of important elements that make a good therapeutic relationship, but it is important to make clear that a therapeutic relationship is a formal relationship between a medical professional and patient. The Nursing and Midwifery Council (2008) maintains that at all times nursing staff must maintain appropriate professional boundaries in the relationships they have with patients and clients.
Therapeutic relationships ease and comfort a client`s mind. A full-bodied therapeutic relationship fosters a comfortable environment constituting contentment, thus decreasing anxiety levels (Gardner,
There are a multitude of reasons why an individual may need or want therapy; whether it’s due to learning how to cope with a mental disorder or disability, life happenings such as traumas or abuse, addictions, or even PTSD. Anybody can receive it – individual persons, families, or groups. It isn’t hard to argue that most therapists and psychologists will agree that the therapeutic alliance is one of the most beneficial foundations of a therapy session. Also referred to as the working alliance or working relationship, it represents the bond between therapist and
In this essay, I am going to give a structured reflective account on the development of a therapeutic relationship with a client on one of my clinical placements as part of my training as a student nurse. I will be using a reflective model which explores the processes involved in developing and maintaining such relationships bearing in mind theoretical knowledge and how it applies to this clinical experience. Jasper (2003) describes reflective practice as one of the ways that professionals learn from experience in order to understand and develop their practice. As a trainee health care professional, I have learnt the importance of reflection in
Therapeutic relationship is defined as the collaboration and attachment between the client and therapist that focuses on meeting the health care needs of the client (Bordin, 1979). In this relationship, the therapist without prejudice shows Empathy, insight, understanding and acceptance of the client. Duan and Hill (1996) defined Empathy as “feeling into” the experience of the client. Over the years, the research evidence keeps piling up, and indicating a high degree of Empathy in a Therapeutic relationship is possibly one of the most potent factors in bringing about positive outcome in the therapy
Research has shown that a strong therapeutic alliance is necessary for establishing a beneficial contact between the therapist and the client. If the therapist does not encourage the creation of a reliable therapeutic alliance from the beginning of the treatment, it will be hard to develop a constructive relationship with the client later. Establishing the therapeutic alliance will increase the chances of achieving the goal of the treatment because the clients will be willing to cooperate if they trust and respect the therapist. Clients are not likely to cooperate with therapists who impose their authority aggressively. Instead of imposing their authority on the patient, therapists should develop work with their patients by
By examining the bond between a therapist and his client we can further understand how important the role of therapeutic alliance is in treatment outcome. The authors point out that therapeutic alliance plays a major positive impact on the outcome of therapy. Individuals who build good therapeutic alliances with their therapists experience more productive and effective therapy than individuals who do not.
Therapy is often said to be just as much of an art as it is a science. Namely because there is so much that goes into it. To create a successful therapeutic relationship, there are some key elements that need to be a part of the formula. Each therapist may end up having a different recipe, but it is important that a therapist knows what ingredients he or she may need and what they can add for it to be successful. Throughout this paper, this writer will discuss characteristics she hopes to embody as a therapist, as well as the values and skills she wishes to bring with her into a therapeutic relationship.
This paper will explore the concept of dual relationships between counselors and clients and the ethical implications of such relationships. In addition to presenting several examples of dual relationships, this paper will also explore how ethical decisions must be made to avoid potentially harmful or exploitive relationships in therapy as well understanding how different interactions between counselor and clients can be understood from an ethical standpoint, as well as how reviewing these ethical dilemmas may shape my future career as a counselor.
The therapist and client relationship is important in effective therapy. The therapeutic relationship must be built upon before any technique and theory will be effective. Communicating real empathy and showing a genuine interest in the client will begin a solid therapeutic foundation. However, the therapist must “have the ability to stay outside the system while maintaining some emotional attachment to its members” (Patterson, Williams, Edwards, Chamow, & Grauf-Grounds, 2009, p. 107). This paper reviews and critiques an interview I recorded of a couple that pertains to clutter building up around the house. The goal of this activity was to seek out information using various questioning techniques and basic interviewing skills, and
A therapeutic relationship is a professional, inter-personal alliance in which the nurse and client join together for a defined period to achieve health-related treatment goals (Chauhan & Long, 2000), which may only last for a short period of time but
Understanding the counseling session from the client’s perspective is a very important aspect in the development of a therapeutic relationship. A clinician must be an excellent listener, while being to pay attention to the client’s body language, affect and tone. The dynamics in the counseling session that is beneficial to the client include the recognition of the pain that the client is feeling. The detrimental part of this includes a misunderstanding of the real issues, a lack of consideration of the cultural aspects of the client, and a lack of clinical experience or listening skills. In this presentation, we will discuss the positive and negative aspects of the counseling session from the client’s perspective which
Solidarity is generally considered as a communicative approach to improve personal relationships. Individuals may express their feelings, attitude, opinions or belief which are rather indicative of an orientation towards solidarity (Koester, 2006). The core intention of individuals expressing solidarity is mutuality. The individuals convey their solidarity in different ways, which include expressing approval, showing interest, sympathy or claiming common grounds (Koester, 2006). In health care context, solidarity approaches in conversations were used the health professionals to attain various aims. For instance, it is used as a simple way for a medical professional to find out more about the