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Therapist use of silence in therapy: A survey
Author(s) -
Hill Clara E.,
Thompson Barbara J.,
Ladany Nicholas
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
journal of clinical psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.124
H-Index - 119
eISSN - 1097-4679
pISSN - 0021-9762
DOI - 10.1002/jclp.10155
Subject(s) - psychology , psychotherapist , silence , clinical psychology , philosophy , aesthetics
Eighty‐one therapists responded to a mailed survey about their use of silence during a specific event in therapy and about their general attitudes about using silence in therapy. For the specific event, therapists used silence primarily to facilitate reflection, encourage responsibility, facilitate expression of feelings, not interrupt session flow, and convey empathy. During silence, therapists observed the client, thought about the therapy, and conveyed interest. In general, therapists indicated that they would use silence with clients who were actively problem solving, but they would not use silence with very disturbed clients. Therapists learned about using silence mostly through clinical experience. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Psychol 59: 513–524, 2003.