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Collaborative Influence
Author(s) -
Strong Tom
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
australian and new zealand journal of family therapy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.297
H-Index - 19
eISSN - 1467-8438
pISSN - 0814-723X
DOI - 10.1002/j.1467-8438.2000.tb00432.x
Subject(s) - dialogic , negotiation , perspective (graphical) , meaning (existential) , psychology , resistance (ecology) , psychotherapist , power (physics) , strict constructionism , sociology , public relations , epistemology , pedagogy , political science , computer science , social science , ecology , physics , quantum mechanics , artificial intelligence , biology , philosophy
Collaborative therapists acknowledge their role in influencing clients and the outcomes of therapy. But the word ‘influence’, for many new to the collaborative therapies, can be mistakenly connoted as an undue exercise of therapist power. From a dialogic and social constructionist perspective, this article reflects on how therapists can be influential in collaborative ways. Negotiating ‘shared intentionalities’ with clients, while privileging their preferences in meaning‐making and change—as part of respecting their primary authorship over their lives—assists therapists to employ their influence in ways that stay collaborative. Furthermore, by regarding client ‘resistance’ and misunderstanding as instructive, therapists can enhance their efforts to stay collaborative.