[Lrad123]

There’s another thread where this has come up and I didn’t want to hijack, so I’m starting this one.

I wouldn’t say that I see my therapist as an absolute authority figure, but I’ve come to him for guidance and to help me talk through my thought processes, the way I see the world, and my patterns. I’m aware that he’s human and flawed and that I might not agree with everything he says. I’ve spent quite a bit of time testing him to make sure that I believe that he’s mostly good and consistent and that there are no big red flags. I’m assuming he’s spent more time studying, reflecting and processing his inner world and I think it makes him a little bit of an authority on that sort of thing. So I guess I see him as a bit of an authority figure, but he’s had to earn that role. As someone who’s had to do a lot on my own (someone on a different thread referred to me as an orphan which is mostly true, I guess) I like the idea of having someone trustworthy to rely on and who feels a bit like an authority figure at least for an hour or two per week. It can also make me pretty uncomfortable to let someone have that role. I guess attachment and transference factor in too which can make this a complicated issue.

Do you see your therapist as an authority figure? I’m not interested in therapy-bashing posts, please.

[stopdog]

I did not but I think the therapists thought of themselves in that manner and presented that way. I frankly didn't see where the therapist knew or did anything at all.

[CharlieStarDust]

I don’t. She also doesn’t present herself as such. I see her as a disaffected and disconnected soundboard; someone to talk about things I can’t tell the real people in my life.

[Lrad123]

Originally Posted by stopdog

I did not but I think the therapists thought of themselves in that manner and presented that way. I frankly didn't see where the therapist knew or did anything at all.

I suspect mine is aware that his clients might perceive him as an authority figure, although I’d also say he’s pretty humble. I spent a long time thinking he wasn’t terribly useful and possibly not all that knowledgeable, but for some reason I stuck with him anyway, and my mind has slowly changed. It’s been an incredibly slow change on my part though.

[LonesomeTonight]

I do see him as an authority figure. He doesn't see himself as one--he sees himself as more of a partner in my therapy, where I'm the expert on me and he's the expert on psychology. But it doesn't keep me from seeing him that way. In talking lately about how I interact with male authority figures and what I'm looking for from them, he seems to understand what's going on for me and accept it more. And we're using it as a way to figure out what's going on with me in terms of childhood/teenage stuff and transference.

[ArtleyWilkins]

No, I saw my therapists as professionals that I worked with. None of them presented themselves as authority figures and probably would have scoffed at the suggestion.

I did, most definitely. I mentioned that fact to her one time and she seemed rather surprised. "You see me as an authority figure?!" I was like well duh.

[missbella]

For a long time I saw any persuasive personality as an authority figure, including my therapists. But, as Stopdog said, they presented themselves that way. They kept me in their thrall feigning knowledge they didn’t possess including causalities no human could know.

I thought I needed authority figures at the time. But in truth I needed to grow up, shedding my externalized authority figures.

[Xynesthesia2]

I did not and it probably would have never occurred to me if I had not read that many people did and that many Ts promote it also. I could accept their authority as an expert of psychology if they demonstrated that sort of knowledge/skill, like a consultant or a specialist doctor, but relative to me? No, it just does not make any sense in my personal world. I also have ever seen a very few people as authority figures in my life (other than forced workplace hierarchy), not even my parents so much beyond teenage years. My first T tried to play the authority game but I boldly rejected it. I have never been someone who liked/needed authority much in an emotional sense. I very much like when people challenge me in smart/useful ways, but that still does not create authority.

[JaneTennison1]

Not even slightly. I think my first T I did but I also think there was some mother figure transference and counter transference going on. This T? no way

[sophiebunny]

Anyone who has the power to admit me to the hospital against my will has authority. Do I see them as authority figures? Good question. Let me think about that.

[zoiecat]

I agree with sheltiemom. My first T was not. Even though she had a PhD she was mainly a sounding board to talk with who gave me some advise.

My current T is an LPCC and although I have never thought of him as an authority figure I guess he is. He is not the type to allow me to just talk about my week. He is all about progress. If I SH I have to spend the next 3 sessions doing a chain analysis. If I am SUI there are other requirements. He is very caring and wants the best for me but is all business and has his own expectations from me. Although I think of him as a hired professional, I can only continue to see him if I follow the rules. So I guess in that way he is an authority figure.

[stopdog]

I think if someone thinks of a therapist in terms of what the therapist will or will not allow - then the therapist has been given or has taken authority

[starfishing]

Mm, sort of. My current therapist is older than I am and I admire him quite a bit professionally and really respect his judgment and opinions, so there's an element of authority there even though it's not really something he seems to project intentionally or a way he expects me to see him. It contrasts substantially with some therapists I've seen in the past who expected to be seen as authorities without doing anything to earn it.

[Omers]

I don’t with current T and in his usual Awesome T way he is really cool with it. I guess it helps that I have a degree in psychology and several friends that are T’s so that humanizes them. Some T’s though have had a problem with me though because I see it as a partnership and don’t do the one up BS.

[feralkittymom]

Former T could act authoritatively if the circumstances demanded it of him (only in a case of preserving life and as a last resort); but I would not cast him as an authority figure. I saw him more as a protector than an authority figure. And his overall philosophy of practice was not to cast himself in an authoritative role. I see his role much as my own as a teacher: I guide students by creating an environment that I believe provides them the best opportunities to succeed, but occasionally I have to take authoritative action because the ethics of my profession require it of me.

Current T I can't even imagine being authoritative in tone or action. But I also don't see her in a protective role, nor am I looking for that. So with a different type of client, maybe she could be more decisive.

[HowDoYouFeelMeow?]

One yes, one no. Both are older than me.

[missbella]

I believe authority or social dominance can be established or maintained in subtle ways, often without conscious participation.

I feel that the person who owns the narrative or interpretations is asserting authority. Likewise pathologizing, labeling, stressing the other's misfortunes to rescue them can create dominance.

[autonoe]

I do, even though he has told me not to and I try not to. But it's his office, his space, and he's staring at me while evaluating what I'm saying. He has the power. I've tried to see him as someone I've hired to do a job for me, but it doesn't work.

[WarmFuzzySocks]

I see her as more of a mentor. She has information and experience to share with me, but acts more as a facilitator and sounding board than as an authority.

[Amyjay]

No, I do not see my T as an authority figure at all. If any T I saw did so I would dump them pretty quickly. I am not looking for an authority figure.

[GingerBee]

I do, because that’s what I am looking for. He’s pretty much the same age as me, and yet is currently fulfilling a paternal role in my head.
We’ve talked about it, and we’re working it through. It’s been fascinating to see the dynamics I create in relationships. I have some world class projection skills!
He doesn’t want us to have this dynamic forever, but has made me feel that it’s fine and safe if it is what I need right now.
Ultimately, I’d like us to be two equal adults in the room together, but it’s hard when I feel so emotionally young most of the time.

[Spirit of Trees]

I fall into the pattern of seeing any person with professional knowledge as an authority figure, even when I don't want to view them in that way. This is the case with my T, even though we're working together and she's not 'telling me what to do' - like a teacher, boss or parent would. I have some emotional baggage about authority figures so it's a bit of a pain.

Edit: I also see my T as a guide, someone who can help me make healthy changes to my behaviours, emotional management and thought patterns.

[MoxieDoxie]

My T does not present himself having authority over me. The authority feeling comes from with in me, comes from my damaged brain of being emotionally abused and neglected as a child starting from age 0. Since I have parental transference and most my part are young then of course he is seen as an authority figure as children see adults as authority figures. Any T can take authority over you if they think you are a danger to yourself or others.

[here today]

I viewed the therapists according to a social role that they functioned in, as I saw it. And that role had authority. They were being paid for a professional service, even if I didn't always know what that was (and felt that I didn't have to, as well as couldn't since I didn't have the education and training, even though I did do some of my own research, trying to learn something to help myself), and were licensed by the state, a social authority.