Question

During the course of psychotherapy, the therapist has mixed conscious and unconscious feeling towards a patient, this is known as

• A. Transference
• B. Countertransference
• C. Dissociation
• D. Preoccupation

Hint:

Remember who the feelings originate from -- is it the patient's feelings toward the therapist, or the therapist's feelings toward the patient?

Answer 1

The Correct Option is B

Psychoanalytic framework -- Transference vs Countertransference:
These two concepts are mirror images and are frequently tested in NEET PG Psychiatry:

• Transference: Patient projects past feelings (often about parents or authority figures) onto the therapist. Direction: Patient → Therapist. Example: A patient begins to idealize the therapist as a father figure.
• Countertransference: Therapist develops mixed conscious and unconscious emotional responses toward the patient. Direction: Therapist → Patient. Example: A therapist feels excessive protectiveness or irritation toward a particular patient, rooted in the therapist's own unresolved conflicts.

Key differentiator in this question:
The subject of the feelings is the therapist, and the object is the patient. This unambiguously identifies Countertransference. Had the direction been reversed (patient feeling toward therapist), it would be Transference.

Clinical note: Countertransference is managed through the therapist's own supervision and personal analysis. Dissociation and Preoccupation are unrelated to the therapist-patient emotional dynamic described here.

\[\boxed{\text{Countertransference}}\]