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Affective Constellations for Countertransference Awareness Following a Client's Suicide Attempt
Author(s) -
Cureton Jenny L.,
Clemens Elysia V.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
journal of counseling and development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.805
H-Index - 78
eISSN - 1556-6676
pISSN - 0748-9633
DOI - 10.1002/jcad.12033
Subject(s) - countertransference , alliance , vignette , psychology , context (archaeology) , psychotherapist , constellation , reflection (computer programming) , social psychology , computer science , physics , astronomy , paleontology , political science , law , biology , programming language
Effective counseling with suicidal clients requires the development and maintenance of a strong therapeutic alliance. However, unmanaged countertransference (CT) can inhibit the alliance. This article provides strategies for enhancing CT awareness in counselors to support alliance building with clients after a client suicide attempt. The authors define CT in the context of suicide, introduce affective constellations as a method for CT awareness, and apply the method to a case vignette. A figure for self‐reflection and supervision is provided.