“Class is in you”: an exploration of some social class issues in psychotherapeutic work

Ryan, Joanna

doi:10.4324/9780429483974-8

Cited by 5 publications

(8 citation statements)

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“…Despite many respondents reporting how class did not affect their therapeutic alliance, several of these had strong reactions to initial impressions and of feeling unequal; attributions that are ‘often emphasised within the intensity of the therapeutic encounter’ (Ryan, , p. 60). This lack of awareness reflects, perhaps, how social class impacts on the relationship in other, more elusive ways (Kraus et al., ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Interestingly, findings from this study show that inequality also exists where there is social class similarity, something Liu () terms as ‘lateral classism’, though feelings of inferiority were generally exacerbated in lower‐class clients with a higher‐class therapist, supported in research by Balmforth () and Proctor (). These power imbalances, possibly originating from innate socialisation messages (Kim & Cardemil, ) and from classism experienced earlier in life (Liu et al., ; Ryan, ), were being felt within the hierarchical structure of the therapeutic relationship (Chalifoux, ). Moreover, respondents who felt inferior appeared unable to raise this issue with their therapists, perpetuating feelings of powerlessness and inequality.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Social class and the therapeutic relationship: The perspective of therapists as clients. A qualitative study using a questionnaire survey

Trott

Reeves

2018

Couns and Psychother Res

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Background This research aimed to explore clients’ perceptions of the impact of social class and whether, if so how, perceived social class disparities impact upon the therapeutic relationship. Method A total of 45 completed questionnaires, via an online survey, were returned, comprising 30 middle‐class and 15 working‐class qualified and practising therapists from their role as client. A quasi‐phenomenological approach was taken and thematic analysis used to interrogate the data. Findings Four primary themes were identified as follows: (1) Perceptions of own social class; (2) Social class as a facilitative aspect of therapy; (3) Negative impact of social class on therapy; and (4) Clients perceptions of their therapeutic relationship. The findings show that where there was social class disparity, it was the explicit recognition and acknowledgement of disparity that were shown to have a positive impact on the client; improving equality, increasing rapport and enabling greater psychological growth. Implications for practice Therapists’ lack of awareness of social class was shown to lead to inadvertent oppressive and/or classist behaviour. For a client to take full benefit from therapy, therapists must recognise the importance of social class and classism and their impact upon the therapeutic relationship, and be prepared to attend to these dynamics when appropriate. Conclusions Though many respondents thought social class was an irrelevant factor within their therapeutic relationship, this study illustrates that social class was a silent but powerful force affecting clients’ feelings of equality and the effectiveness of therapy.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Social class and the therapeutic relationship: The perspective of therapists as clients. A qualitative study using a questionnaire survey

Trott

Reeves

2018

Couns and Psychother Res

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“…Nichtsdestotrotz sind Bevölkerungsschichten mit Diversität aufgeladen, inklusive diverser Klassenhintergründe. Sich über den Status quo hier nicht hinauszubegeben bedeutet, den Blick auf die Begleitfaktoren zu vermeiden, wie den Schmerz über die Ungleichheit oder das Schuldgefühl wegen der Privilegien [7].…”

Section: Mit Schweigen üBergangen: Die Sache Mit Den Klassenunterschiunclassified

Elemente der Diversität – das Unterschiedliche, das Fremde, das Ferne, das Unvertraute und das Unverstehbare in der Balint-Arbeit

Arzberger

2018

Balint

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ZusammenfassungUnter Verwendung von Vignetten aus Balint-Gruppen legt die Arbeit ihr Augenmerk auf das, was als fremd, bedrohlich oder unbegreiflich wahrgenommen wird, und wie Abwehr-mechanismen – z. B. Verleugnungen und Verschiebungen – eingesetzt werden, um mit Vorgängen, die vom Vertrauten abweichen, fertig zu werden. Wenn wir das Verschiedenartige oder das Fremde verstehen möchten, wenn wir nach einem Kontext suchen, der Sinn ergibt, müssen wir unsere eigenen „fremden“ Gefühle mit einbeziehen. Das bedeutet, das Unterschiedliche als etwas Wertvolles zu sehen, nicht als etwas, das wir loswerden müssen. Unsere Entscheidung hängt hier davon ab, wie offen wir uns an unsere eigenen innersten Phantome heranwagen1.

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“…Other empirical findings indicate that therapists report being less interested in treating lower‐social class clients and may avoid working with them due to a fear of poor outcomes in therapy (Aronson, ; Sutton & Kessler, ). Therapists also report greater negative countertransference reactions to lower‐social class clients and are more likely to believe that medical treatments are most effective for these clients (Ryan, ). Therapists are also less likely to attend to situational and environmental factors expressed by lower social class, including employment concerns and housing conditions (Balch & Miller, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Trainee estimates of working alliance with upper‐ and working‐class clients

Kaiser

Prieto

2018

Couns and Psychother Res

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Background Although social class is recognized as an important variable within multicultural psychology, relatively little research has been conducted on the effects of social class on psychotherapy processes and outcomes. Aims Using a vignette‐based methodology, we examined the effects of therapy trainees’ social class identity and attitudes on their estimation of forming a working alliance with clients from an upper‐ and working‐class status. Materials & Methods Participants were randomly assigned to read one of two clinical vignettes of either an upper‐ or working‐class client presenting for individual therapy. Participants then rated the anticipated strength of their working alliance with the client and their attitudes related to social class. Results Regarding training, our results indicated that participants received very few clock hours of instruction related to social class issues. After controlling for socially desirable responding, although we detected no statistically significant bias against lower‐class clientele, we did find a measure of bias among trainees towards those from the upper class. Lower trainee social class; a greater belief that social class status is earned through personal actions, merit and ability; and a greater level of anticipated difficulty working with their vignette client explained the greatest amount of trainee bias towards those from the upper social class. Discussion We discussed the implications of these findings for training and future research.

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“Class is in you”: an exploration of some social class issues in psychotherapeutic work

Cited by 5 publications

References 0 publications

Social class and the therapeutic relationship: The perspective of therapists as clients. A qualitative study using a questionnaire survey

Social class and the therapeutic relationship: The perspective of therapists as clients. A qualitative study using a questionnaire survey

Elemente der Diversität – das Unterschiedliche, das Fremde, das Ferne, das Unvertraute und das Unverstehbare in der Balint-Arbeit

Trainee estimates of working alliance with upper‐ and working‐class clients

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