Affiliation:
1. University of Tennessee, USA,
Abstract
Research suggests that psychotherapy relationships formed by adult clients can exhibit all the essential elements of attachment bonds identified by Mikulincer and Shaver. Specifically, some clients: (i) regard their therapist as stronger and wiser; (ii) seek proximity through emotional connection and regular meetings; (iii) rely upon their therapist as a safe haven when they feel threatened; (iv) derive a sense of felt security from their therapist, who serves as a secure base for psychological exploration; and (v) experience separation anxiety when anticipating loss of their therapist. This paper presents a conceptual model describing how therapists can regulate therapeutic distance to create the relationship conditions best suited for clients with a hyperactivating versus deactivating attachment pattern. These therapists create a corrective emotional experience by offering the same client not one static attachment relationship, but rather a progressively changing series of relationships that promote more adaptive functioning.
Subject
Sociology and Political Science,Developmental and Educational Psychology,Communication,Social Psychology
Cited by
117 articles.
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