Transference and Countertransference from an Attachment Perspective

Locating the phenomenon of transference within an evolutionary perspective, this important book develops a new form of dynamic therapy that focuses on the dynamics of attachment in adult life and will be of use to a range of mental health professionals and those at all levels in the caring and education professions.

Transference and Countertransference from an Attachment Perspective: A Guide for Professional Caregivers explores the ways in which transferential phenomena can be located in the different aspects of the self that are instinctive, goal-corrected and interrelated. At the centre of the book is the idea that when intrapersonal or interpersonal systems (aspects of the self, such as careseeking, caregiving, sharing interests, sexuality, self-defence, building a home) get aroused, the behaviour that follows is only logically and meaningfully connected when the system (aspect of the self) reaches its goal. Placing this new theoretical and clinical approach within the psychoanalytic tradition, the work of developmental psychologists and the field of neuroscience, the book takes us to the heart of the clinical encounter and explores a range of issues including trauma, the effect of early misattunements, love and hate in the therapeutic relationship, burnout in caregivers, and the need for exploratory care for caregivers themselves.

Building on the therapeutic modality that emerged from the research described in McCluskey's To Be Met as a Person (2005), this book provides a valuable guide for psychologists, psychotherapists, medical practicioners, nurses, social workers, organisational consultants, educators, coaches, and workplace managers.

The McCluskey model for exploring the dynamics of attachment in adult life which underlies the work described in this book is currently being practised in a variety of settings and with different ages and communities. These include end-of-life care, organizations, homelessness, mental health, dementia care, children, adolescents and families, schools, pastoral work, training of clinical psychologists and attachment-based psychoanalytic psychotherapists, occupational therapy, art therapy, private practice, domestic violence, police training, GP support and consultation, nurse training and support, pain management clinics, foster carers, social workers, couple relationships, supervision of psychotherapists and counsellors, therapeutic communities, and complex grief and learning disabilities.

Una McCluskey is an Honorary Research Fellow at the University of York. She is a psychoanalytic psychotherapist, a trainer, consultant, researcher and supervisor. She developed and rated the concept of ‘goal-corrected empathic attunement’ (GCEA), a key factor in the therapeutic alliance and essential in regulating both careseeking and fear. She has developed a model of psychotherapeutic practice based on the dynamics of attachment in adult life, called exploratory goal-corrected psychotherapy (EGCP). This model is relevant to individual, group, and organizational development. She has an international reputation in the attachment field and has developed a community of professionals who are trained and experienced in the practice of EGCP. She has published widely in the field.

Michael O ‘Toole is a Registered Counselling Psychologist and Psychotherapist. Michael works in private practice in the west of Ireland. He has taught and lectured for many years in the University of Limerick and is currently offering the model presented in this book to trainees at the Bowlby Centre in London. He has published papers exploring clinical dilemmas in the field of attachment.