Countertransference in Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy with Children and Adolescents

Summary

This book examines the role of countertransference in psychoanalytic psychotherapy with children and adolescents. It explains how therapists’ emotional responses to their young patients can provide important information about the child’s internal experiences and difficulties. The contributors discuss how children may communicate their feelings through play, behavior, and nonverbal forms of interaction, which can evoke powerful emotional reactions in the therapist.

The book also explores countertransference in different clinical situations, including work with neurotic, borderline, psychotic, traumatized, and adolescent patients. It emphasizes that therapists need to recognize and reflect on their own emotional responses rather than simply acting on them. When understood carefully, countertransference can become a useful clinical tool for understanding the child’s emotional world and improving the therapeutic process.