San Gabriel Valley Psychological Association
Newsletter Nov-Dec 2011
www.SGVPA.org
Dancing the Transference:
Integrating Old Steps with New in the Rhythm of
Psychotherapy
Elisabeth R. Crim, Ph.D.
Transference is a concept as old as the field of psychology itself. A key
component of psychoanalytic and psychodynamic therapies, transference
is also a central concept present and affecting all modalities of
psychotherapy. Understanding and applying the concept of transference
to the process of treatment (whether supportive, cognitive behavioral,
systems, psychodynamic, psychoanalytic, EMDR, body psychotherapy,
interpersonal neurobiology, other) can be critical to successful treatment
outcome. “The ability to attend to the transference when indicated is a
necessary and basic skill set required of therapists to most effectively and
ethically attend to their clients regardless of theoretical orientation” (Crim,
2009).
An effective definition of transference is based in the Intersubjective
Approach to Psychoanalytic Treatment developed by Robert Stolorow and
his colleagues. In this theory, Stolorow (2000) states, “Transference is an
unconscious organizing activity of the intersubjective states between two
people that is inherently relational. It exists between any two people and
the organizing activity multiplies as people join the intersubjective field in
which the interpersonal relating occurs.” Each party has an unconscious
organization (principle) of the stuff (verbal content, affect states, facial
expressions, voice tone, etc.) of the interpersonal experience. The process
of developing new organizing principles within the context of the
therapeutic relationship can also be considered neuropsychologically as
we discover the plasticity and ongoing development of our brains and
neural networks throughout our lives.
The inherently relational and mutually involved process of psychotherapy
is supported in the studies of early infant-caregiver interaction patterns of
the mutual sharing of affect states. The intersubjective field of parent-
infant, and later parent-child, can be seen as replayed between therapist-
patient. Each brings their own process and efforts of approaching,
avoiding, and making sense of the affect, eye contact, facial expression,
touch, lack of touch, voice tone, etc. shared in the client-therapist
intersubjective field where the dance of the transference occurs. Based in
the infant research and the theories of Stolorow and other relational
psychoanalytic thinkers, we understand that transference is co-
determined by both the client’s and the therapist’s ways of organizing
affect and relational experiences.
The term, “transference” or “organizing principle” can be understood as
one concept applied equally to therapist or patient. The therapist must be
actively aware of her own organizing principles, how they are at play and
may be interfering with or facilitating the effective and developmentally
appropriate treatment of the client. It is the ethical and therapeutic
responsibility of the treating clinician to also attend to these processes for
the patient in the course of treatment.
Transference is multi-faceted and can be experienced as positive and
negative, conscious and unconscious. It is a process that can be
experienced mentally, emotionally, relationally, and physically(or
somatically) and spiritually. The field of psychology is just beginning to
embrace what various psychologists and theorists have known and
attended to outside of the mainstream for years, that the mind (mental,
emotional)-body and mind-body-spirit are interconnected and often
simultaneously active in the intrapersonal and interpersonal experience of
being human.
The recent explosion of research, literature, and theory re: how attachment
works psycho-neuro-biologically, the interconnectedness of mind-body
processes, and the increasing acceptance of the somatic and spiritual as
valid interconnected aspects of whole health and being human all point
toward exciting new and renewed directions for the field of psychology
and psychotherapy. With these new directions come new and renewed
ethical challenges. With the great creative intellectual and clinical leaps of
the type we are currently experiencing in our field, education, training, and
consultation that incorporates an understanding of our own transference
processes is essential.
These additional facets of transference, which I have termed Somatic
Transference and Spiritual Transference are integral to and mutually
affected by the intersubjective relational process. They require mind-body-
spirit conceptualization and intervention in the context of relationship.
They require a renewed exploration of our own transference as we explore
and attempt to understand the multidimensional processes unfolding
within us, within our patients and within the intersubjective field we share.
We are invited and challenged to thoughtfully learn and integrate new
steps and rhythms as we care for ourselves, treat our patients, make
appropriate referrals, and ethically, effectively Dance the Transference!
Please contact Dr. Crim regarding references for this article.
____________________