I the Process of Relational Play Therapy Between a Trainee
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
i The Process of Relational Play Therapy between a Trainee Therapist and a Maltreated Child: A Case Study Sheralyn Watkiss 202316769 Submitted in partial fulfilment for the degree MAGISTER ARTIUM in COUNSELLING PSYCHOLOGY in the Faculty of Health Sciences at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University Supervisor: Prof. C.N. Hoelson January 2014 ii Dedication This treatise is dedicated to the therapists and clients who risk engaging in relational therapy, and who are undoubtedly changed because of it. iii Acknowledgements This research would not have been possible without the input, support and encouragement from a number of people. My sincere thanks go to: My research supervisor, Professor Christopher Hoelson for his tireless patience, input and support. I especially wish to thank him for sharing in my initial excitement, as well as the frustrations and joys that ensued through the process of research. My therapy supervisor, Mrs Lisa Currin for giving me the space to find a therapeutic identity. Dr Gillian Smale for showing me the value of relational therapy, for teaching me to honour my own ‘little professor,’ and for walking an important therapeutic journey with me. My husband, Brendon for standing behind my endeavours without question, for sharing this journey of Masters with me, and for providing a space of ‘holding’ when things got tough. My family, particularly my siblings, and friends who patiently supported and encouraged me throughout the last two years. The psychodynamic group (you know who you are), for challenging my thinking and relating to clients over the last two years. Kara Phelan for her editing expertise and for taking the time to read, not just proof read this study. Finally, I want to thank Ella for risking relational connection with me, for sharing moments of ‘being’ and for teaching me how a powerful relational connection can transform you. iv Abstract Research in the field of attachment theory and object relations theory has indicated that early attachments between a child and his or her primary caregiver have significant implications for the development of that child. Early relationships begin to shape the child’s sense of self and other and healthy relationships lead to secure attachments. However, children who encounter early maltreatment or a disruption in caregivers are particularly vulnerable to developing insecure attachments and a disrupted sense of self and other, which has consequences for their subsequent psychological development. In the South African context, increasing numbers of children are being orphaned or placed in formal foster care with many children at risk for insecure attachments. This has implications for therapeutic work with an increased need to promote secure attachment relationships and a stable sense of self and other. The current case study aimed to describe the relational experience of play therapy that took place between a maltreated five year old female child and a female trainee therapist with this purpose in mind. The therapeutic process was embedded within a relational therapy framework which included object relations and attachment theory. The researcher made use of a qualitative descriptive dialogic research approach to conduct the research. The data were analysed using content analysis, where the play therapy sessions were analysed according to concepts relating to Fairbairn’s (1963) object relations theory as well as Winnicott’s (1965) object relations theory. Prominent themes that emerged included the role of the holding environment, splitting of good and bad objects and the presence of a false self versus a true self. In addition, the conflicting presence of two repressed ego structures, namely the libidinal and antilibidinal ego structure were noted throughout the therapeutic process. Keywords: antilibidinal ego; attachment theory; case study research; descriptive dialogic; libidinal ego; research design; object relations theory; play therapy; relational therapy v Declaration I, Sheralyn Ann Watkiss, student number 202316769, hereby declare that this treatise for the degree Magister Artium in Counselling Psychology is my own work and that it has not previously been submitted for assessment or completion of any postgraduate qualification to another university or for another qualification. _________________ _____________ Sheralyn Ann Watkiss Date vi Table of Contents Dedication ........................................................................................................................ ii Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................... iii Abstract ........................................................................................................................... iv Declaration ....................................................................................................................... v CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION AND MOTIVATION FOR THE STUDY .......... 1 Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 1 Motivation for the Current Study ..................................................................................... 1 Overview of Chapters ...................................................................................................... 4 CHAPTER TWO: THEORETICAL OVERVIEW OF CONCEPTS RELATING TO OBJECT RELATIONS AND ATTACHMENT THEORY ............................................ 6 Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 6 General Assumptions of Object Relations Theory ........................................................... 7 Considering Fairbairn and Winnicott ............................................................................... 8 The Role of Dependency .................................................................................................. 9 Early infantile dependence. ............................................................................................ 10 The transitional period. .................................................................................................. 11 Mature dependence. ....................................................................................................... 11 Splitting and its Link to Environmental Deprivation ..................................................... 12 Fairbairn’s Endopsychic Situation ................................................................................. 13 The central ego. .............................................................................................................. 14 The libidinal ego. ........................................................................................................... 14 vii The antilibidinal ego (internal saboteur). ....................................................................... 14 Attachment Theory ......................................................................................................... 16 Attachment behaviour .................................................................................................... 17 Secure and Insecure Attachments .................................................................................. 18 Types of insecure attachments. ...................................................................................... 19 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 23 CHAPTER THREE: PLAY AND PLAY THERAPY ................................................... 25 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 25 Play ................................................................................................................................. 25 Stages of play ................................................................................................................. 26 Play Therapy Approaches .............................................................................................. 28 Melanie Klein’s Psychoanalytic Approach to Play Therapy ......................................... 29 Anna Freud’s Psychoanalytic Approach to Play Therapy ............................................. 29 Relational Approaches to Play Therapy ......................................................................... 30 Child-centred play therapy approaches. ......................................................................... 30 Object relations play therapy. ........................................................................................ 32 Object Relations as an Integrative Play Therapy Approach .......................................... 32 Key Aspects of Object Relations and Attachment Based Play Therapy ........................ 34 Phase one. ....................................................................................................................... 34 Phase two ....................................................................................................................... 35 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 36 viii CHAPTER FOUR : METHODOLOGY ........................................................................ 38 Introduction ...................................................................................................................