| Abstract: | The shift from first to second order cybernetics has made the concept of the therapist-family system part of the everyday discourse of family therapy. In spite of this shift, there is little focus in family therapy literature on the emotional aspects of the therapist-family system. Relevant process concepts available to us at present, such as induction or accommodation, are poorly defined and inadequate. Three reasons for the neglect of the emotional aspects of family therapy are explored. They are, firstly, more recent theoretical and technical directions, secondly, the politics of gender and thirdly, the enduring difficulty of working with and writing about our own and families' powerful emotions. Finally, following a case example, some psychoanalytic concepts are described and discussed. It is possible that concepts such as counter-transference and projective identification may enrich family therapists' understanding of what is happening within the therapist-family system. |
