Connecting in-session corrective emotional experiences with postsession therapeutic changes: A systematic case study.

Abstract

This systematic case study investigated the nature of corrective emotional experiences (CEEs) that occurred over the course of psychotherapy in a single case and how those in-session CEEs were related to changes in the client's life. Client's e-mails on her experience of therapy sessions and postsession changes sent to the therapist, as well as outcome and postsession measures, were analyzed. The client was a Japanese woman who sought help for a variety of psychological symptoms including depression, anxiety, and emotional dysregulation. A long-term therapy of 67 sessions was conducted by a Japanese male psychotherapist who followed an integrative affect-focused approach. The quantitative analysis showed that the client achieved clinically significant change in depression, anxiety, self-compassion, interpersonal functioning, and selfesteem over the course of therapy. A grounded-theory analysis of client e-mails to the therapist showed that she experienced a deep connection with the therapist, gained a sense of relief through experiencing her disavowed feelings, and developed a positive sense of self in the course of her sessions. The client felt she had gained strength, had deepened her understanding of her feelings and behaviors, and that she was beginning to develop new relationships with others. The understanding of the theory of CEEs through this case, cultural issues, and the limitations and future directions of this study are discussed. Clinical Impact StatementQuestion: What was the nature of corrective emotional experiences (CEEs) that occurred over the course of therapy and how were they related to changes in the client's daily life? Findings: In this case conducted in Japan, central to in-session CEEs were positive relational experiences with the therapist characterized by feeling seen and understood by the therapist who was fully present and working through past emotional pain. As a result, the client felt encouraged and empowered, extending the therapeutic work and initiating new actions in her daily life. Meaning: A deep connection with the therapist as well as the experience of a sense of relief and positivity through working with past emotional conflicts were both keys to therapeutic change in this integrative affect-focused therapy. Next Steps: More systematic case studies are needed to examine in-session CEEs and postsession changes and their relationship, validating the findings cross-culturally.

Gratitude in a culturally adapted psychotherapy group and in Chinese culture: Interpretative phenomenological analysis.

“…Such corrective experiences can be experienced in individual therapy (Nakamura et al, 2022) or group therapy (Brown, 2016). Examples of corrective experiences include positive emotional experience (e.g., I felt the therapist’s empathy), emotional transformation (e.g., being able to express new feelings), new understanding (e.g., changing one’s usual self- and perceived social perceptions), and connecting to one’s emotional pain in new ways (Nakamura et al, 2022). Indeed, MGG members connected their most grateful moments to their corrective experiences: Song, by disclosing past suicidality, connected to her core pain; Song shifted from experiencing social invalidations to social support; Lin and Erica engaged in positive emotional experiences; Ning and Eddie experienced emotional transformation (being able to share emotions with others); and Song, Ning, and Eddie achieved new understandings (changing social perception).…”

“…In the psychotherapy literature, scholars across therapeutic orientations have consensually defined a corrective experience as one “comes to understand or experience affectively an event or relationship in a different or unexpected way” (Castonguay & Hill, 2012, p. 5). Such corrective experiences can be experienced in individual therapy (Nakamura et al, 2022) or group therapy (Brown, 2016). Examples of corrective experiences include positive emotional experience (e.g., I felt the therapist’s empathy), emotional transformation (e.g., being able to express new feelings), new understanding (e.g., changing one’s usual self- and perceived social perceptions), and connecting to one’s emotional pain in new ways (Nakamura et al, 2022).…”