Posted by noa on October 10, 2000, at 7:56:26
In reply to Re: Hypotheses about Online Text Communication, posted by Dr. Bob on October 9, 2000, at 13:30:03
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> Thanks for all your comments! Let me just follow up on the above. What kind of a monkey wrench?Well, I guess I was thinking about how more traditionally psychodynamic therapies bank on the patient forming a transferential relationship with the therapist that is based on a child:parent relationship, which, of course, involves a difference in percieved status, as well as the actual difference in status because of the doctor:patient set-up.
If it is true that online communication levels the balance of power somewhat, then, online communication might be a good fit for approaches, such as feminist psychotherapy, that try to minimize as much as possible, this power differential.
On the other hand, we have witnessed here all kinds of projection onto you, Dr. Bob, about the power you hold as the moderator/owner of this site, and I would venture to guess that whatever way people relate to your authority, they would do so in person or in text, ie, either way, the style in which they react to authority would be expressed.
Regarding twins:
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> > In ... the twinship or alter-ego transference, the patient perceives the therapist to be psychologically similar to himself or herself. Conceptually the patient perceives the therapist and himself or herself to be twins, separate but alike. In the twinship transference for the selfobject cohesion to be maintained, it is necessary for the patient to view the therapist as ‘just like me’ (Manfield, 1992).
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This concept has always seemed a bit fuzzy to me, I must admit. Perhaps because the therapists I have had are men? I wonder if this twinship phenomenon is stronger in same gender pairings of therapist and client, and I wonder how gender issues are affected by communicating online rather than in person.Another thing about twinship: isn't humor (laughing at the same joke evokes a sense of alikeness) something that would facilitate this, and how is humor affected by the online relationship vs. in-person?
poster:noa
thread:844
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20000813/msgs/915.html