Hostname: page-component-76fb5796d-x4r87 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-27T02:49:16.956Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Perceptions of the Significant Other of the Effects of Psychodynamic Psychotherapy

Implications for Thinking about Psychodynamic and Systemic Approaches

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Jane Roberts
Jane Roberts*
Affiliation:
Camden and Islington Community Health Services NHS Trust, and The Whittington Hospital, Highgate Hill, London N19 5NF
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Background

Clinical practice suggests that partners of psychotherapy patients often have powerful feelings about the therapy and therapist. The repercussions of psychotherapy on those close to the patient are rarely considered. A small exploratory study was therefore conducted.

Method

All patients who had completed at least two months of weekly psychodynamic psychotherapy in 1990 at an out-patient unit of a psychiatric hospital (n = 35) and had a partner with whom they were living at the time of starting therapy (n = 23) were contacted. Eight gave permission for their partner to be contacted directly. All eight partners agreed to participate in a semi-structured interview exploring their perceptions of the effects of the therapy on a number of family relationships. The impact of the process of the study was also investigated by means of a questionnaire sent to all partners some weeks after the interview.

Results

Considerable changes were perceived to have taken place in association with therapy affecting not only the relationship between the couple but also their parenting relationship, the children, and at times members of the extended family. Partners' views about the direction of such changes seemed to influence other perceptions about the therapy.

Conclusions

The repercussions of individual psychotherapy may well spread extensively within a family. This further blurs the boundary between individual and family therapy, both theoretically and clinically. Research procedures are themselves a major intervention and may have a considerable emotional impact on participants.

Type
Papers
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 168 , Issue 1 , January 1996 , pp. 87 - 93
Copyright
Copyright © 1996 The Royal College of Psychiatrists 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Britton, R. (1989) The missing link: parental sexuality in the Oedipus complex. In The Oedipus Complex Today. Clinical Implications (ed. Steiner, J.), pp. 83–100. London: Karnac.Google Scholar
Brody, E. M. & Farber, B. A. (1989) Effects of psychotherapy on significant others. Professional Psychology, Research and Practice, 20, 116–122.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Byng-Hall, J. (1986) Family scripts: a concept which can bridge child psychotherapy and family therapy thinking. Journal of Child Psychotherapy, 12, 3–13.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chiesa, M. (1988) Psychodynamic and systemic approaches. Some areas of convergence. Free Associations, 14, 62–78.Google Scholar
Cray, C. & Cray, M. (1977) Stresses and rewards within the psychiatrist's family. American Journal of Psychoanalysis, 37, 337–341.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Fisher, S. & Mendell, D. (1958) The spread of psychotherapeutic effects from the patient to his family group. Psychiatry, 21, 133–140.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Fox, R. E. (1968) The effect of psychotherapy on the spouse. Family Process, 7, 7–16.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gerson, M-J. (1988) Sullivan and family therapy: an unconsummated affair. Contemporary Psychoanalysis, 24, 699–724.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Glasser, P. H. (1963) Changes in family equilibrium during psychotherapy. Family Process, 2, 245–264.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hatcher, S. L. & Hatcher, R. L. (1983) Set a place for Elijah: problems of the spouses and parents of psychotherapy patients. Psychotherapy: Theory, Research and Practice, 20, 75–80.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Holmes, J. (1985) Family and individual therapy: comparisons and contrasts. British Journal of Psychiatry, 147, 668–676.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hurvitz, N. (1967) Marital problems following psychotherapy with one spouse. Journal of Consulting Psychology, 31, 38–47.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jenkins, H. & Asen, K. (1992) Family therapy without the family: a framework for systemic practice. Journal of Family Therapy, 14, 1–14.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kohl, R. (1962) Pathologic reactions of marital partners to improvement of patients. American Journal of Psychiatry, 118, 1036–1041.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mittelman, B. (1944) Complementary neurotic reactions in intimate relationships. Psychoanalytic Quarterly, 13, 479–491.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Slipp, S. (1989) A differing viewpoint for integrating psychodynamic and systems approaches. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 15, 13–16.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wachtel, E. F. & Wachtel, P. L. (1986) Family Dynamics in Individual Psychotherapy. New York: Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Submit a response

eLetters

No eLetters have been published for this article.