Abstract
This integrative review is focused on a formulation of therapeutic empathy. We describe the “empathic dialectic” as therapists’ capacity to emotionally resonate with patients’ internal states, such as during ruptures, and to coregulate their own and the patients’ states through mentalization. The first aim was to provide a theoretical framework for the empathic dialectic, by summarizing background literature on the empathic process, intersubjectivity, rupture repair, relational psychoanalysis, and attachment. The second aim was to conduct an integrative review of peer-reviewed articles published between the years of 2016 and 2021. After conducting a review of 28 articles, we sought to identify (1) research that supports the existence of an empathic dialectic, (2) evidence that therapists’ attachment influences the empathic dialectic, and (3) implications of the empathic dialectic for training and supervision. Results pointed to the central role of therapists’ attachment security in the empathic dialectic, and the negative repercussions of therapists’ insecurity when mentalization is underdeveloped. Results also highlighted the role of supervision as a means of enhancing trainees’ self-awareness of their attachment, and its impact on the alliance. As the American Psychological Association embraces a clinical competencies model in its accreditation of clinical psychology doctoral programs, the importance of attaining an integrative understanding of therapeutic empathy has become increasingly imperative. To this end, we conclude by promoting the empathic dialectic as a key clinical competency, and providing further recommendations for training and supervision.
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SLM initially had the idea for this paper and wrote the first draft, as it formed the theoretical basis of her dissertation, which she completed as a doctoral student in LIU’s Clinical Psychology Doctoral Program in January of 2017. LWS supervised this work, critically revised every draft, and made significant modifications to the main idea.
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McIntyre, S.L., Samstag, L.W. Promoting an Empathic Dialectic for Therapeutic Change: An Integrative Review. J Contemp Psychother 52, 127–136 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10879-021-09516-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10879-021-09516-5