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Relational Drawings in Couple Therapy
Author(s) -
ROBER PETER
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
family process
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.011
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1545-5300
pISSN - 0014-7370
DOI - 10.1111/j.1545-5300.2009.01271.x
Subject(s) - dialogical self , resentment , blame , space (punctuation) , psychology , protocol (science) , psychotherapist , focus (optics) , social psychology , medicine , computer science , physics , alternative medicine , optics , pathology , operating system , politics , political science , law
In couple therapy sessions, partners often get into long and drawn‐out discussions, heavy with pain, resentment, and blame. It is vital for the therapist to avoid becoming entangled in these escalating interactions. In this article, as one way of avoiding these interactions, a protocol is proposed of using relational drawings in couple therapy for opening space for new stories. This approach is strongly rooted in extensive therapeutic experience, as well as in dialogical ideas. Not the content of the partners' imagery is central, but rather the dialogical exchange about the drawings. In particular, the focus of the therapist is on the partners' interactions, their hesitations and their surprises. Working in this way opens space for the partners to reflect on what they experience as crucial in their bond. The protocol is illustrated with two detailed case examples.