Content vs experiencing

• The Case of Gary III - Life in a malevolent world. by Jim Pretzer, 10/25/97
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    • Therapeutic Relationship and Content by Patricia A. Doherty, 12/16/97
      
      

This is a very, very brief response to the question of the importance of intellectual and other cognitive contents when talking to patients vs the the pt.'s experience of the relationship with the therapist. I do not mean to imply that content is unimportant. However, it's importance is secondary and dependent upon the relationship to the therapist. No matter what the information that is contained in the content, its effectiveness depends on how the sosurce of information is experienced, i.e., is it a reliable source, or is it unreliable, or is it adversarially deliberately misleading, etc. So the essential precondition for any information transmitted verbally has to be the experience by the patient that the therapist is reasonably reliable, trustworthy and well disposed toward the patient. In other words, that there exists a relationship of trust and respect. To put this in term of self psychology [one can use many other terms and description] the effective therapeutic relationship is one that is experienced by the patient as providing affirmation of the patient's worth [mirroring] and as providing an other who is looked up to as having qualities that the patient fears he/she lacks [idealizing the other] and who is willing to accept the patient despite the lack as it is experienced by the patient. Ideally the relationship becomes mutual and reciprocal in that both participant experience each other as respectful and trying to understand each other. Whenthese conditions have been established then cognitive information can be transmitted from one to the other and be effectively accepted. [I thought I could be brief but this is the best I can do] Ernie Wolf

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