"Negative process": A recurrently discovered and underestimated facet of therapeutic process and outcome in the individual psychotherapy of adults.
Abstract
A good therapeutic alliance has proven to be an important contributor to positive outcome in the individual psychotherapies of adults. Treatment models that have been studied include psychodynamic, cognitive, cognitive-behavioral, interpersonal, experiential, and some eclectic approaches. However, the ability of therapists to establish and maintain a good alliance has been greatly overestimated. The reason for this is the enormous difficulty that human beings have in dealing with Interpersonal conflict in which they are participants. Evidence for the ways in which therapists struggle with negative therapeutic process—hostile interchanges between patients and therapists—is traced throughout the psychotherapy research literature. It appears that negative process is a major obstacle to successful treatment, and that its pervasiveness has been underestimated. A therapeutic technical strategy that uses metacommunication is recommended for effectively managing negative process. Training therapists to use this technical strategy is discussed, as are recommendations for future research on the topic of negative process.
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The ability to detect and effectively manage resistance is a key clinical skill.
“a number of investigators have suggested that the ability to detect and effectively mange resistance is a key clinical skill (Binder & Strupp, 1997; Burns & Auerbach, 1996; Safran & Muran, 1996; Westra & Dozois, 2008; Westra, in press).”
From Comparing the predictive capacity of observed in-session resistance to self-reported motivation in cognitive behavioral therapy (2011) · cites this paper as Binder & Strupp, 1997
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Norcross, J. C., & Wampold, B. E. (2011) · Psychotherapy · doi:10.1037/a0022161 · Cited by 813 · see citing works
Trauma-Informed Social Work Practice
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“…not all moments in a session are of equal significance and a number of investigators have suggested that the ability to detect and effectively mange resistance is a key clinical skill (Binder & Strupp, 1997; Burns & Auerbach, 1996; Safran & Muran, 1996; Westra, in press; Westra & Dozois, 2008).”
Clinical experiences in conducting cognitive-behavioral therapy for social phobia
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The impact of resistance on empathy in CBT for generalized anxiety disorder
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Hara, K. M., Westra, H. A., Coyne, A. E., Di Bartolomeo, A. A., Constantino, M. J., & Antony, M. M. (2022) · Psychotherapy Research · doi:10.1080/10503307.2021.2001069 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
- Authors
- Binder, J. L., & Strupp, H. H.
- Affiliations
- Vanderbilt University (US)
- Venue
- Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice
- Published
- 1997
- Volume
- 4
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 121-139
- ISSN
- 0969-5893 (ISSN-L)
- 1468-2850
- OpenAlex
- W2067562365
- Cited by
- 156
- References
- 5
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 1 · 2023: 8 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 7 · 2020: 6 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 6 · 2017: 7 · 2016: 7 · 2015: 4 · 2014: 7 · 2013: 11 · 2012: 8
- FWCI
- 2.62
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Clinical Psychology Science and Practice (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychotherapy Techniques and Applications
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychoanalysis and Psychopathology Research
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Counseling Practices and Supervision
- Keywords
- therapeutic relationship, individual psychotherapy, interpersonal conflict, metacommunication, therapist training, treatment outcomes, therapeutic process
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