Therapists' perception of their relationship with depressive vs borderline patients

Abstract

There is a marked difference between the effects of psychotherapy for depression and borderline disorders, being the treatment less effective in this last condition. Looking at the importance of the bond in the prediction of therapeutic results,some of these differential effects might be explained by the different emotional responses that these patients tend to call in the therapists. The aim of this study is to examine the emotional reactions and the therapeutic bond of psychotherapists towards clients diagnosed with major depression (MD) vs. borderline personality disorder (BPD). Methods: A semi-structured interviewwas conducted with 45 clinical psychologists from Argentina with different theoretical orientations that treated at least one patient diagnosed with BPD and one with MD during the last year.They were asked to think of a patient with each disorder and answer about the sensations that they experience when working with them. Furthermore, they were consulted through an ad hoc question how they experienced their therapeutic bond. Currently, we are using Consensual Qualitative Research to analyze the materials of these interviews creating domains,core ideas,and qualitative categories.. Results: We expect that psychologists will express more feelings of fatigue and boredom when treating clients with MD than when assisting BPD clients; they will also express feelings of high demand but greater satisfaction when they perform psychotherapy with patients with BPD.