WHEN THERAPY RELATIONSHIPS MAKE A DIFFERENCE: CORRECTIVE RELATIONAL EXPERIENCES OF ADULT CLIENTS IN OPEN-ENDED INDIVIDUAL PSYCHOTHERAPY

Therapists typically facilitated CREs by identifying or questioning client behavior patterns, as well as conveying profound trustworthiness (deep care, understanding, nonjudgmentalness, or credibility). Types of corrective shifts typically involved clients gaining a new understanding of behavior patterns or the therapist/therapy. Consequences of CREs generally included improvements in the therapy relationship, and improvements in the clients' intrapersonal well-being.

Clients who did not have CREs variantly wished their therapist's theoretical orientation was a better match, while none of the clients who had CREs did so. Non-CRE clients had lower pre-therapy attachment anxiety and avoidance in comparison to clients who reported CREs. Antecedents, types, and consequences of CREs differed depending on client attachment anxiety and avoidance.

Clients with high attachment anxiety seemed to have a greater interpersonal focus (e.g., indicated enacting their maladaptive behavior patterns with therapists prior to the CRE, had CREs focused on understanding clients' behavior patterns) while clients high in attachment avoidance seemed to have a greater intrapersonal focus (reported more client facilitators of CREs, especially deep disclosure prior to CREs, and more reduction in unwanted feelings after CREs).

Implications for practice and research are discussed.