18.3 THERAPIST SELF-DISCLOSURE (TSD) AND POLITICS

Abstract

This Clinical Perspectives is designed to explore important considerations around therapist self-disclosure (TSD) with youth and their families as it pertains to political opinions. Dilemmas imposed by disclosure, as well as nondisclosure, of a therapist’s political beliefs or historic positions will be explored. Participants will gain an understanding of important factors to consider when making decisions around TSD and politics. This Clinical Perspectives will consist of 4 sections: a review of the literature pertaining to TSD and political orientation, various ways in which disclosures about therapist political beliefs can occur, an exploration of the unique circumstances pertaining to TSD with youth in the context of a therapist’s politics, and lastly, clinical material highlighting examples of TSD around their politics in the treatment of youth and their families. Literature on TSD around politics in work with adults can offer some useful insights, but scholarship around TSD and politics while working with youth remains limited. Disclosures around a therapist’s political beliefs can be inadvertent, deliberate, and inescapable. The literature highlights that most adult patients talk about politics in treatment and that therapists are more apt to make political disclosures when a therapist imagines a shared political belief. Developmentally, one’s engagement in their political environment may signal an effort to separate and individuate from their parents and an important experience to explore with their therapist in a neutral environment. Clinical material will be shared, highlighting therapeutic dilemmas around TSD and politics. Given that disclosures around politics occur in a myriad of ways and different times during a patient’s treatment, it is imperative that therapists understand the developmental considerations unique to youth and their families and have a framework by which to guide decisions around TSD in the context of politics.