Three factors were identified in a study to find out what clients found in their psychotherapy.
Therapist listening
This was the most significant. Therapist listening had three qualities that made it different from talking to family, friends, and other professionals. Therapists were seen as objective because they were not personally involved in the issues. A special connection between client and therapist evolves through careful listening, a sense of “really being heard.” Therapist listening allowed the clients to feel validated and believed. Validation created the feeling that one’s problems were real and not made up.
It is an article of faith, backed up by years of research and clinical experience, that therapeutic change occurs when the client feels accepted, safe, and trusting of the therapist.
Talking It Out
Talking about one’s problems in a climate of helpful listening allows clients to release their emotions and gain insight and perspective. It can help someone organize his thoughts as he hears himself speak aloud the pent-up or “forbidden” feelings and ideas. Clients often say, “Hearing myself say those words for the first time makes it real.”.
New Perspectives and Change
Being presented with a new way of looking at themselves, others, and their life was the third factor. Gaining a different perspective allowed clients to make fundamental changes. After viewing an issue from a different angle, clients experienced new behaviors, emotions, and thoughts that seemed natural and authentic.
What is most helpful to clients is when therapists question, suggest, and mediate. Thought-provoking comments and simple questions such as whom, what, and when benefited the client’s quest for change. Suggestions allowed the clients to see new viewpoints and inspired new ways of thinking and acting, even if the client sometimes chose not to follow up on the specific recommendations of the therapist.
Source:
Diane R. Gehart-Brooks and Randall R. Lyle, “What Works in Therapy: Clients’ Perspectives” Family Therapy News, December 1998-January 1999, p 25