Transference Assessment in Psychotherapy: A Systematic Review.

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Psychotherapy
• Psychoanalysis

Background:

• Transference, a core psychoanalytic concept introduced by Sigmund Freud, involves displacing feelings from past relationships onto a therapist.
• While central to psychoanalysis, transference is recognized across various psychotherapeutic modalities with differing clinical relevance.
• Empirical evidence indicates transference occurs in all close relationships, including therapy, and is influenced by attachment styles.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review the development and validation of 15 distinct assessment tools for measuring transference.
• To provide a comprehensive overview of instruments utilized across diverse psychotherapeutic approaches for assessing transference.

Main Methods:

• Systematic review of 15 transference assessment tools.
• Analysis of instruments based on data collection methods: observational ratings, clinician reports, and patient self-reports.

Main Results:

• A variety of tools exist for measuring transference, employing different data collection methodologies.
• The reviewed instruments are used across various psychotherapies, indicating broad applicability of transference assessment.

Conclusions:

• Transference interpretation can enhance patient awareness and improve therapeutic outcomes, though its direct link to therapy success requires further investigation.
• Further research is needed to compare the effectiveness of different transference assessment tools across patient populations and to clarify the relationship between transference and the therapeutic alliance.