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Section 3. Clinieal Applications

Touch and Boundaries in Transactional Analysis: Ethical and Transferential Considerations

Pages 30-37
Published online: 28 Dec 2017
 
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While Eric Berne viewed physical contact between therapist and client with considerable anxiety and disapproval, the use of touch as therapeutic invention has become common in the practice of transactional analysis. This article presents a theoretical discussion of some of the implications of intentional physical contact between therapist and client, with particular attention to ethical and transferential concerns. It is the central premise of this article that the use of touch can simultaneously evoke a rich and potentially disturbing mix of history, affect, and desire.

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William F. Cornell

William Cornell, M.A., TSTA, maintains an independent private practice in individual and group therapy, clinical supervision, and training in Pittsburgh and Gibsonia, Pennsylvania.
 

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