ABSTRACT
Areas of client and therapist agreement/difference of perspective on therapeutic self-disclosure (TSD) are important because each perspective has a unique contribution to the therapeutic process. A review of research suggests clients and therapists generally agree that TSD has benefits to the relationship, particularly in cross-cultural and vulnerability contexts discussed in prior chapters, and should generally be relevant to treatment, brief, constructively worded, and judicious. Clients and therapists tend to affirm ethical precautions, and agree that TSD may be helpful when the content is of the therapist’s real-time reactions, positive emotions, or lower intimacy demographic details, rather than higher intimacy content regarding the therapist’s past. In other research studies, there were indications of client and therapist disagreement regarding TSD impact on client perception of therapist expertness and whether therapists should have a predetermined TSD policy. There were also differences of opinion regarding the extent to which self-disclosure frequency differs significantly depending on therapist stage of career. These findings highlight early points in this text regarding increasing client demand for greater egalitarianism and reciprocity, alongside an agreed upon need for a mindful and professionally restrained approach to facilitating psychotherapy.
