Monday, April 30, 2012

Client change


This chart comes from a book that was published in 1978. A basic transactional analysis text at the time. It is one of those things you find in a book that you notice for some reason and kind of never forget. It always struck me as an interesting chart.

Client change 2

It’s great when you get a client who is in the first and second groups and they attribute their change to you the therapist.
One of the reasons I noticed it was that it is based on the assumption that everybody is help-able. That all clients can be helped. It assumes that all people can be helped as long as the therapist’s skill is high and there is enough time and energy put into the client. I have my doubts that this is true at least at times. Some clients at some points in time can not be helped. That can and often does change over time for the same person. For instance a person who is in the 5th 20% is likely, over time to move up the list and therefore become more capable of being helped. I would add a 6th category - at this point in time no change will occur no matter what the therapist does or the amount of energy put in.

Another feature is that it is based only on the client and the therapist characteristics. I would add in a third criteria and that is the psychological condition being presented. Some things are easier to treat than others regardless of the client’s motivation. It is easier to treat a tightwad than a spendthrift. The tightwad does not have enough Free Child and the spendthrift has too much Free Child. People naturally do not like giving up their FC. The antisocial personality is too hedonistic whereas the OC personality is not hedonistic enough therefore the antisocial generally is harder to treat.

Woman smoker



Then of course value judgements also creep into what is considered abnormal. It was only 40 years ago that homosexuality was considered by mainstream psychology to be an abnormal psychological state. Some kinds of illicit drug use are considered abnormal behaviour whereas the reason why it is illicit is for political reasons not psychological reasons. Hence they are considered psychologically abnormal because of a political judgement not the natural state of the human psyche. In these types of conditions perhaps one needs to consider more than just the client and therapist qualities.
Graffiti

10 comments:

  1. Love the new look blog and the photo isn't lost on me. I like the look on the lady's face, though the menthol cigarette looks wrong.

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  2. Actually I think maybe it is a pen.

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  3. It is a cigarette Kahless,

    Women look very sophisticated smoking those long thin cigarettes. You should try it out and see what it looks like for you Kahless

    Graffiti

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  4. Sophistication doesn't appeal to me. Nah. I'll pass. ;-)

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  5. You seem the sophisticated type Kahless!

    Go on take a risk in life and do it!

    Graffiti

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  6. Lol. One thing I ain't is sophisticated. Thank goodness. Risk is playing chicken on the motorway not smoking a cancer stick. I am now a fully fledged non smoker. And proud of it. Nothing will change my mind on that one now.

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  7. OMG the Kahless I once knew and loved is now gone!

    You are like one of those transformers. Transformed from the rebellious child like person into an establishment person. I suppose if you hang out with OBEs that may happen.

    Goodbye and hello

    Graffiti

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  8. Nope. I am not establishment. Or maybe I am? OMG.
    Actually, I smoked to be cool. Hopefully I am still cool as I lost loads of weight and bought a trendy wardrobe.

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  9. You have finally beaten me kahless. I have tried all sortys of ways to get you smoking again and not one of them has worked. I now give up my good pommy friend!

    Graffiti

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  10. Ok. But please don't stop posting pictures of beautiful women smoking from time to time.
    (hugs)

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