Countertransference responses in short-term dynamic psychotherapy

The concept of countertransference is used in a broader sense (Heimann, Kernberg) or a more restricted one (Reich, Dewald) in the psychoanalytic literature. All authors generally agree that it is of great importance 'to have countertransference under conscious awareness and control' (Singer and Luborsky). Our study stresses the importance of the countertransference phenomenon in the context of short-term dynamic psychotherapy (STDP). Three clinical examples were selected to illustrate only the specific issues of this study. Psychotherapies were carried out in the Psychotherapy Unit of the Psychiatric Clinic, Athens University. Therapists were residents in psychiatry and were supervised by psychiatrists with a formal psychoanalytic training and experience. Taking into account the therapeutic processes, three kinds of countertransference responses were discerned: (a) those connected with the patient's transference pattern; (b) those linked with the therapist's character structure, and (c) those manifested in specific stages of STDP, especially during the termination phase.