The Applications of Attachment Theory to Psychotherapy

The attachment patterns of the therapist and their implications for treatment

Working on the premise that therapy heals through the creation of a new relationship of attachment, this talk explores how we can identify our attachment own patterns as they play out in our relationship with our patients. David Wallin considers how it might inform our theoretical understanding and therapeutic interventions to recognize that in the interaction with the patient we are constantly in a state of mind that is secure, insecure, or unresolved. He asks how the therapist’s attachment history shapes his/her efforts to be of help to the patient. What are the particulars of personal history and patterning that shape your own conduct as a therapist? How do your own experiences of trauma and shame affect your work with your patients?

Participants at David Wallin’s 2014 seminar were invited to assess their attachment patterns through the ECR-Experiences in Close Relationships self reporting system. For more information about that process visit internal.psychology.illinois.edu