Client Resistance during Therapy

Paper Summary:

This paper introduces, summarizes, and reviews Jeff Rothstein's journal article, "Is Handling Client Resistance A Pas De Deux?". The paper discusses Rothstein's approach to how counselors, therapist,s and even teachers should handle an individual's resistance during the helping skills process and asserts that Rothstein's approach would be useful in a classroom and a social worker's office, as well as a psychoanalyst's couch.

From the Paper:

"How should resistance be viewed, upon the part of the individual counselor or a teacher during the helping skill process? First and foremost, according to Jeff Rothstein, LCSW, the act of resistance should not be resisted on the part of the counselor. He states that "to me, resistance is a sign you are getting somewhere," that is you, the counselor, teacher or therapist. This means that resistance upon the part of all helping individuals "should be responded to as a speed bump rather than a stop sign. To shut down or resist" the queries of the therapist or counselor "may be an adaptive attempt by the client to maintain a sense of control over their circumstances," a sense of control that ultimately is merely a reinforcement of ineffectual life strategies that they are actively seeking help from the counselor to alleviate. (Rothstein, 2000)"

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