The impact of parental participation in the child's psychoanalytic therapeutic process

Abstract

In child psychoanalytic psychotherapy, including parents or guardians in the process is not a random or indifferent factor. The literature is restricted and not conclusive regarding the approach to be followed. Our aim was to analyze the impact of parental participation in the therapeutic process of a school-age child, who began psychotherapy because he presented behavioral problems and relationship difficulties in school. We performed a naturalistic, descriptive, longitudinal study that followed the Systematic Case Study method. The psychotherapy lasted for 160 sessions with the patient and 25 interviews with the parents. We identified that the interviews with the parents had an effect on the therapeutic process, observable in the sessions after these interviews, both in the therapist and in the child. We conclude that the psychopathological state of the child, the family dynamics, therapist’s characteristics and experience are important factors and capable of contributing to different effects, in each case.