There are many issues that a professional psychologist must avoid in his/her practice, and dual psychology is one of them. Knowing the ins and outs of the patient’s story is extremely important, yet the emotional involvement into the patient’s story of life can be quite dangerous and should generally be avoided as good as possible. However, there comes the time in the practice of every psychologist when (s)he has to handle the issues which relate quite closely to him-/herself, ad here is mine.
To start with, the issue which I had to face included a lot of emotional involvement. After noticing one of the students paying less attention to the course of the lesson than usually, I asked if there was anything that was possibly distracting him from the classes. As it turned out, there were quite serious issues that he was having with his wife and which he needed counseling really badly on. Martin, the student, asked me to help him sort things out, yet the dual relationships which the given situation involved, made the search for the solution as difficult as it could get.
Therefore, the delicate situation needed to be solved before we could proceed with the actual analysis of the student’s problems. Although it was really hard not to empathize with Martin and his difficult situation, I still kept in mind that, once I take a personal issue with it, the whole problem-solving session will be ruined. Indeed, according to the most accomplished authors of psychological theories, there is no way a dual relationship can help or at least not stand in the way of the psychological analysis and the further search from the solution: “Sadly, this line of thinking can induce a sense of shame whenever the practitioner experiences confusion or uncertainty, or makes an error of judgement” (Gabriel, 2005, 13).
However, it was still possible to pick a strategy that could help to distract from the fact that we know each other and proceed with solving the problem. First of all, it was most reasonable not to touch upon my role in the given situation, focusing on the student. Secondly, I had to take advantage of the situation, using everything I knew about Martin to help him recover faster. Finally, knowing me well, Martin trusted my professional skills and would not question my methods of therapy, which was also an important positive aspect of dual relationships (Lazarus, 2008).
Thus, the most logical solution in the given case was to abstract from the fact that we actually know each other and work as if we were a doctor and a patient. Thus, the level of awkwardness was driven to the minimum and we could keep on working on the case without blushing when meeting on lectures and seminars. In addition, with no practical relation of the case to any person I know, it was easier not to pass personal judgments and offer an objective evaluation of the problem.
Hence, it is obvious that the situation involving dual relationships can and must be handled in such a way so that both the patient and the psychologist could abstract away from their emotional issues and look at the situation critically, assessing it objectively. Only looking at the facts in a sober manner can help solving the conflict, which the given case is a solid proof for.
Reference List
Gabriel, L. (2005). Speaking the unspeakable: The ethics of dual relationships in counseling and psychology. London, UK: Taylor& Francis.
Lazarus, A. (2008). Dual relationships and psychotherapy. New York, NY: Springer Publishing Company.