Client resistance in talk therapies

Characterizes 6 levels of the therapeutic process in terms of what clients attempt to get from therapists. The intent of the client at Level 1 is to prevent contact and intrusion, at Level 2 to fight, at Level 3 to avoid, at Level 4 to reach out, at Level 5 to risk mutuality, and at Level 6 to be fully alive. The resistance behaviors that express these intentions and their accompanying affects are described, and procedures for resolving the resistances are suggested. The general strategy is to identify and verbalize the resistances, with the therapist stating what he/she observes and what he/she imagines the observations to mean.