Question

Read the conversation given below and answer the question that follows.

Rohan meets his therapist regarding a family problem that he is facing. According to him, the therapist does not respond to him.
Rohan:	“You seem to neither listen to me nor bother about my problem since you are not saying anything.”
Therapist:	“I am listening. But it looks like you are very upset.”
Rohan:	“You are just like my father who ignores me whenever I wish to share my problems. You seem indifferent towards my feelings just like him.”
Therapist:	“Rohan, I am understanding you. But I am angry and hurt at this moment by what you are saying. You should not compare me to your father. Please apologise to me.”

Evaluate the conversation between the patient Rohan and his Therapist to explain Transference and Counter Transference.

Answer 1

This interaction illustrates transference (from Rohan) and countertransference (from the therapist).

• Transference: Transference refers to the process by which a client unconsciously redirects feelings and attitudes from a person in their past onto the therapist.
  In the dialogue, Rohan says, “You are just like my father, who ignores me whenever I wish to share my problems with him.”
  Rohan is projecting unresolved emotions and expectations from his relationship with his father onto the therapist. He feels ignored and invalidated, just as he did with his father, and now attributes those same feelings to the therapist, even if the therapist's actions do not justify them.
• Countertransference: Countertransference occurs when a therapist projects his/her own unresolved feelings onto the client, often in reaction to the client’s transference.
  In the dialogue, the therapist responds, “Rohan, I am trying to understand you. But I am angry and hurt at this moment by what you are saying. You should not compare me to your father. Please apologise to me.”
  The therapist, instead of maintaining professional neutrality, gets personally affected and emotionally reactive, expressing hurt and demanding an apology. This emotional reaction indicates that the therapist’s own feelings and perhaps unresolved issues are influencing the therapeutic interaction.