Do T's manipulate the Transference?

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T's actions and responses can potentially change the dynamics. Do they purposely do "things," either verbally or action-wise to trigger the transference?

I believe that they do at times.
For example, forgetting something important that a client told them or letting clients go over time, etc? These could cause major transference responses, and could be done by mistake..... but could also happen purposely...

So, I'm in graduate school to be a T. First, the term transference is quite overused on here, and people tend use it to just mean feeling attached to your T. For the sake of this post, I'm not going to use that term. I will say that it has already been drilled into me that the therapeutic relationship is the most important factor in a positive outcome. Therefore, a great T will do whatever he/she can, within appropriate ethical boundaries, to foster that relationship. For instance, a T might let you go a bit longer when you need it, call to check in, say encouraging words, etc., but it only works well if it's genuine. Don't think of it as transference trickery. Think of it as your T showing you he/she is genuinely there to support you and help foster your healing.

Oh T#2 was a master T this. He sent me an email the night i first saw him just saying he was checking in to see how i was doing and he encouraged me to reach out to him. He invited attachemt and then ripped the rug right out from under me when he decided several months later i was BPD. SOB!

Actually, I am in intensive psychodynamic therapy where one of the main focuses is on the transference and "working through it."

So, my questionn has to do with manipulating the transference, not just the concept of attachment to the T.

Does transference mean feeling a personal relationship instead of a medical one?

No.

Transference is a concept that refers to our natural tendency to respond to certain situations in unique, predetermined ways--predetermined by much earlier, formative experiences usually within the context of the primary attachment relationship.

Freud coined the word "transference" to refer to this ubiquitous psychological phenomenon, and it remains one of the most powerful explanatory tools in psychoanalysis today—both in the clinical setting and when psychoanalysts use their theory to explain human behavior.

Transference describes the tendency for a person to base some of her perceptions and expectations in present day relationships on his or her earlier attachments, especially to parents, siblings, and significant others. Because of transference, we do not see others entirely objectively but rather "transfer" onto them qualities of other important figures our earlier life. Thus transference leads to distortions in interpersonal relationships, as well as nuances of intensity and fantasy.

The psychoanalytic treatment setting is designed to magnify transference phenomena so that they can be examined and untangled from present day relationships. In a sense, psychoanalyst and patient create a relationship where all the patient’s transference experiences are brought into the psychoanalytic setting and can be understood. These experiences can range from a fear of abandonment to anger at not being given to fear of being smothered and feelings of dependency or excessive idealization, and on and on.

With all due respect, and with hopeful expectations that you will always express and maintain your professional and ethical boundaries- do not minimize the very real and common abusive behavior by therapists that occur regularly. You sound very naive. Transference overused? Give me a break. Get out of the books and into reality.

Lots of different versions of reality out there, Hopelesspoppy.

I think therapists try to manipulate clients. If they can do it with transference or whatever else, I think they will at least try to do so as the tool of the manipulation.

The principle of transference (which can take many forms) and the abuse of a client by a therapist (including a therapist taking advantage of an erotic transference) is not even close to the same thing. You and Content30 are discussing entirely different ideas.

To get back to the original question, if you are asking it the way I think you are-then yes, I do believe they can.

I don't believe this question is talking about a T manipulating the therapeutic relationship in an unethical way. (Tollhouse, correct me if I'm wrong.)

I believe that T's (good one's, that know what they're doing) can purposely do subtle things to see if they'll possibly trigger a transference response when they're finding it hard for a patient to make progress. Our previous blocked out fears and scary events (or what have you) as a child can greatly affect any of our future relationships-even the therapeutic one. Having blocked out feelings can prevent us from being able to actually get to the deepest parts of us-that's where the real work within ourselves is. The great thing is that when these feelings do surface within a relationship with a T, it can be used as a (hopefully) safe place to work through those issues. In this kind of healthy scenario, I believe that it is in the T's best interest to make an attempt to trigger a transference response for the benefit of the client. But not to say they always do it on purpose. And it sure isn't easy for the patient to go through it-it can be very confusing and scary for many reasons. But in the end it makes for a healthier person.

This is from my experience as a patient. I'm still going through stuff with my T, but what I've worked through already has helped me see that this "scary", "confusing" thing with her, and remembering and working through my past, is a very healthy thing. It's leading to a better me-so I don't have to let the past dictate my future relationships

I absolutely believe they manipulate and encourage transference.
A t who would try this with a naive client is looking for some of their own needs to be filled, mainly stroking their ego! Encouraging clients to need and depend on them but thankfully not all ts are like this

Yes, and they can use it to hurt you.

I hate how it was used on me. She ****ed me up so bad. She manipulated every minute of it. She used it to turn me into a puppet.
Well, those strings are cut.
I've never had homicidal thoughts but all I do is fantasize now.
I never used to hate women even though the majority of my abusers were women but I do now.
It's my turn now.
Let the world beware.

I had one chance at healing and she took it from me.
I will whisper her name into the ears of others.
They can ask her why she hurt me.

This sounds inhumane and cruel to me. Why should a client pay to have their heart ripped out from under them?

Wow! Why is your response so mean-spirited? There is a better way to get your point across without all the jabs. Geez!

I don't think this is always the end result. i just said manipulation. I don't think heart ripping is always the result of manipulation.

Otoh, one doesn't exactly go there anticipating a party. There is usually a box of tissues. So some pain is to be expected. This is not necessarily a bad thing.

I don't think the horribleness of therapy is always just from the therapist's manipulation. I agree therapy is awful. I believe therapists are manipulative and use all the tools and responses they and a client have to further this manipulation including transference. I just don't think ripping out the client's heart is always the result of the manipulation. For many reasons.

Got it now. You're so precise! I think I used to be able to think...!

Btw, I read the Alison Bechdel mom & pop books and passed them on to my t. I think she was in town this summer but I was too weird to go see her talk. Dumb! Agree Fun Home is a much better book, but I liked her insights about her mother just not having it to give, and all the Winnicott stuff.

I think Ts can get useful information out of the transference and work with it - or rather work with you as affected by it - to help you. I don't know how to explain it more tangibly though.

The idea that we "overuse" the transference card on these forums made me snarky. For those who have truly been abused and/or suffer from unhealthy transference it felt like an insult.

I don't believe it was meant as an insult...again, what you are referring to is a therapist taking advantage of his or her power and abusing it (which has no excuse), not about the concept of transference. Transference itself should never be seen as "unhealthy," as it can be quite positive when worked through in a healthy therapeutic relationship.

I don't think this is agreed upon across all the various theories of therapy. Any number of those therapist people do see transference as bad or unhealthy or something to be avoided or not to be used in the therapy those particular therapists are hawking.