Transference and countertransference are two core concepts used in psychodynamic therapy to understand the relationship between therapist and client.
What is transference?
Transference is a person directing onto a present relationship, for example with the therapist, the feelings, expectations and attitudes they carry from important past relationships. This happens in everyday life too: feeling trust or wariness toward someone the moment we meet them may be connected to our past relationship experiences. In therapy these patterns become visible and can be thought about together.
What is countertransference?
Countertransference is the feelings and reactions the therapist experiences toward the client during a session. These feelings can help the therapist form an idea about the client’s way of relating. The therapist takes care to notice them and to think about them in their own supervision.
Why does it matter?
These concepts allow a person to notice the patterns that recur in their relationships within the sessions and to think about them together. The process varies from person to person, and no particular outcome is guaranteed.
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