Feminist Therapy Flashcards
For feminism, 1980s were marked by
Efforts to define feminist therapy as an entity in its own right
The beginnings of feminist therapy can be traced back to..
1950s. Consciousness raising groups. Self help rather than professional help considered the most efficacious mode because the therapeutic relationship is hierarchical
Feminist therapy
Viewed therapy as a partnership between equals. Therapy needed to move away from a reliance on an intrapsychic pathology perspective to a focus on understanding the pathological forces in the culture that damage and constrain women
Chodorow
Psychodynamics feminist therapy
Gilligan
Women’s meal and psychosocial development
Relational cultural theory
Elaborates the vital role that relationships and connectedness with others play in the lives of women
Sandra Bem
Gender schema theory
Kaschak
Engendered lives describes her belief that gender is the organizing principle in people’s lives
The 6 principles of feminist psychology
- The personal is political
- Personal and social identities are interdependent
- Definitions of distress and mental illness are reformulated
- Feminist therapists use an integrated analysis of oppression
- The counseling relationship is egalitarian
- Women’s perspectives are valued
Enns’ therapeutic goals
Equality, balancing independence and interdependence, empowerment, self nurturance, and valuing diversity
Feminist therapeutic goals at individual level
To hell women and men recognize claim and embrace their personal power. To gain freedom from the constraints of their gender role socialization and to challenge ongoing institutional oppression
Social level
Feminist therapy is a consciously political enterprise. The aim is to replace current patriarchy with a feminist consciousness, creating a society in which relationships are interdependent, cooperative and mutually supportive
Rather than adjustment, what is the goal in feminist therapy
Transcendence
The personal is political
Become aware of their own gender role socialization process. Identify their internalized messages and replace them with more self enhancing beliefs. Understand how sexist and oppressive societal beliefs and practices influence them in negative ways. Acquire skills to bring about change in the environment. Restructure institutions to rid them of discriminatory practices. Develop a wide range of behaviours that are freely chosen. Evaluate the impact of social factors on their lives. Develop a sense of personal and social power. Recognize the power of relationships and connectedness. Trust their own experience and their intuition
Feminist therapists
Use gender and power analysis to understand clients and their concerns. Commuted to monitoring their own biases and distortions. Committed to understanding oppression in all its forms as they consider the impact of oppression and discrimination on psych well being. Don’t see the therapeutic relationship in and of itself as being sufficient to produce change. Therapy must not replicate the societal power imbalance. Do not restrict their practice to women clients. Also work with men, couples, families and kids
Relationship between therapist and client in feminist therapy
Based on empowerment and egalitarianism. The inclusion of clients in both the assessment and the treatment process. Feminist therapists clearly state their values to reduce the chance of value imposition. Acutely sensitive to ways they might abuse their own power in the relationship. Actively focus on the power clients have in the therapeutic relationship. Work to demystify the counseling relationship.