Fenomenologia e relação terapêutica

Abstract

Phenomenology has helped researchers to confront the traditional format of psychology investigation, rejecting a theorizing and objectifying interpretation of the psychological phenomena; however, the methodological-empirical debate produces divergences among Brazilian researchers. This article presents an integrative review of the Brazilian Psychology literature about how the therapeutic relationship has been investigated in research based upon phenomenological epistemology approaches. A survey was conducted in virtual databases (BVS, PePsic, SciELO, Portal Capes) to find articles of empirical studies, published in the last 10 years, that had as a focus the analysis of the therapeutic relationship in terms of psychotherapeutic processes, regardless of theoretical approach. Sixteen out of 200 articles were selected for full reading, with only two being phenomenological epistemology approaches. The results and conclusions showed how the epistemological, ontological and methodological debate about research on psychotherapy materializes empirically; pointing out to the scarcity of empirical work on the therapeutic relationship and the contributions of phenomenology for the understanding of the therapeutic relationship in psychotherapeutic processes. The studies suggest a reflection on the ontological scope of intersubjectivity, breaking with a monological view of the psychotherapeutic process and presenting contributions on the possibility of empirical investigation of the therapeutic relationship based phenomenological epistemology approaches.