Feminist Therapy

Dr. Nicole M. Randick, ATR-BC, LPC, NCC

Adler Graduate School
Influential Practitioners
Jean Baker Miller (1928-2006)
Toward a New Psychology of
Women
Carolyn Zerbe Enns
Multicultural feminist therapy
Olivia M. Espin
Women from different cultural
backgrounds
Laura Brown
Ethics and boundaries
Forensic psychology
Trauma survivors
Introduction
First theory from the perspective of a female
Gender and power at core of practice
Consideration of social, cultural, and political
context
Acknowledgement of psychological
oppression of women
Socialization patterns
History and Development
Traced back to the late 1800s
Development = collaboration between
women
Womens movement in the 1960s
Consciousness raising women
Womens services (i.e. battered women shelters)
Mutuality in the counseling relationship
Understanding the social, political, pathological
forces in society
 New Age of Activism
By the late 1960s, a new
age of activism was
ushered in by student
activity surrounding the
Vietnam War and the Civil
Rights movement as well
as older women
dissatisfaction with
domestic restrictions and
workplace discrimination.

http://people.howstuffworks.com/feminism4.htm
History and Development cont.
1970s
Research on gender-bias
Association for Women in Psychology (AWP)
American Psychological Association (APA)
1980s
Self-in-relation model (now RCT)
Second wave of feminism
Liberal, cultural radical, socialist
Second Wave of Feminism
Liberal - Helping individual women overcome the
limits and constraints of traditional socialization
patterns
Cultural solution to oppression lies if feminization
of the culture
Radical seek to change society through activism
and equalizing power
Socialist focus on multiple oppressions and look at
how work, education, family roles affect lives
View of Human Nature
View is very different than traditional male views
Androcetric using male oriented constructs to
generalize to women
Gendercentric proposing two separate paths for men
and women
Heterosexist viewing heterosexual orientation as
normative and desirable
Devaluing lesbian, gay male, bisexual
Deterministic assuming personality patterns and
behavior are fixed at an early stage of development
Intrapsychic orientation attributing behavior to internal
causes results in blaming victim.
Constructs of Feminist Theory Worell and Remer (2003)
Gender-fair approaches - explain the differences in
the behavior of women and men in terms of
socialization processes
Flexible-multicultural perspective - uses concepts
and strategies that apply equally to individuals and
groups regardless of age, race, culture, gender,
ability, class, or sexual orientation.
Interactionist contains concepts to thinking,
feeling, and behaving dimensions of the human
experience
Life-span perspective human development is a
lifelong process development happens over time
Personality Development
Societal gender-role expectations profoundly
influence a persons identity
Gender politics influence how we see ourselves
Connectedness & interdependence are central to
womens development (Gilligan, 1977)
Needed for healthy growth and development
Relational-cultural therapy
Understanding oppression is
central in feminist work
Principles of Feminist Therapy
The personal is political
Problems originate from a social context
Commitment to social change
Recognition of oppression
Womens and girls voices and ways of
knowing are valued and their experiences are
honored
The value of womens emotions and intuition
Principles of Feminist Therapy cont.
The counseling relationship is egalitarian
Client is expert
A focus on strengths and a reformulated
definition of psychological distress
Problems are living and coping strategies
Non-pathological
All types of oppression are recognized
Liberating all members of society
Therapeutic Goals (Worell & Remer, 2003)
Become aware of their own gender-role socialization
process
Identify their internalized messages and replace them
with more self-enhancing beliefs
Understand how sexist and oppressive societal
beliefs and practices influence them in negative
ways
Acquire skills to bring about change in the
environment
Therapeutic Goals cont. (Worell & Remer, 2003)
Restructure institutions to rid them of discriminatory
practices
Develop a wide range of behaviors that are freely
chosen
Evaluate the impact of social factors on their lives
Develop a sense of personal and social power
Recognize the power of relationships an
connectedness
Trust their own experience and their intuition
http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/feminism/images/23761285/title/feminist-
fairy-godmother-photo
Therapists Function & Role
Can be applied to various theoretical orientations
Actions and beliefs and personal and professional
lives are congruent
Emotionally present with client
Social equality and social interest (Adlerian)
Therapy is a shared journey (Existential)
Therapists convey genuineness and strive for mutual
empathy (Person-centered)
Relationship is active and equal (Postmodern)
Therapeutic Relationship
Therapists:
Work to equalize the power
Actively focus on the power their clients have
Work to demystify the counseling relationship by
sharing with the client their own perceptions about the
relationship
Making the client an active partner in diagnosing
Making use of appropriate self-disclosure
Assessment and Diagnosis
Diagnosis comes from a shared dialog
Enns (1993) believes labels are limiting
Too focused on symptoms
May represent an instrument of oppression
May represent gender-role stereotypes
May reflect inappropriate application of
power
May lead to individual solutions
rather than societal change
Potential to dehumanize the client
Techniques and Strategies
Empowerment Assertiveness training
Self-disclosure Reframing and
Gender-role analysis Relabeling
Gender-role Social Action
intervention Group Work
Power analysis
Bibliotherapy
Empowerment & Self-disclosure
Empowerment
Informed consent issues
Discussing how client can get the most from
therapy
Clarifying expectations, identifying goals,
working toward a contract to guide process
Self-disclosure
Equalizing relationship
Involves certain quality of being present
Gender-role Analysis & Intervention
Gender-role Analysis
Explores the impact of gender-role expectations
of the clients psychological well-being and
future behaviors
Assessment and promotion of client change
Gender-role Intervention
Placing concerns/problems in the context of
societys role expectations for women
Power Analysis & Bibliotherapy
Power Analysis
Range of methods aimed at helping clients
understand how unequal access to power and
resources can influence personal realities.
Bibliotherapy
Use of nonfiction books, psychology and
counseling textbooks, autobiographies, self-help
books, educational videos, films and novels
Assertiveness Training
Promoting assertiveness:
Women become aware of interpersonal rights
Transcend stereotypical gender roles
Change negative beliefs
Implement changes in their daily lives
Increase power
Reframing & Relabeling
Reframing
Shift from blaming the victim to a
consideration of social factors in the environment
that contribute to a clients problem.
Focus is on examining societal or political
dimensions.
Relabeling
Changes the label or evaluation applied to some
behavioral characteristic
Social Action & Group Work
Social Action
Social activism essential quality of feminist
therapy
Becoming involved in socially supportive
activities
Group Work
Consciousness-raising and support
Providing an avenue for women to share their
experiences of oppression and powerlessness
Multicultural Perspective
Strengths
Most closely related to multicultural perspective in
counseling
Focus on social structures affecting mental health
Shortcomings
Agenda in feminist therapy may not be shared with some
cultures and their beliefs
Challenges societal values and structures
Future challenge is to build alliances with
multicultural counselors
References
Corey, G. (2005). Theory and practice of
counseling & psychotherapy (7th ed).
Belmont, CA: Thompson Brooks/Cole.
Day, S. X. (2004). Theory and design in
counseling and psychotherapy. Boston:
Lahaska Press/Houghton Mifflin Company.