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Commercial-Life-9998 t1_j83mhe3 wrote

Validates what is already a common assumption. Some ppl can guess at the complexities of a person’s problems while others with the same training and certification can be clueless. So much of care with psychology and psychiatry depends on patients being able to bring forth the important aspects of their problems for therapy. Many,many can’t/ & or won’t. In that case the effectiveness of therapy hinges on empathic, intuitive guesses of the clinician. We haven’t yet developed training that is effective for that. I think the science of the last 50 years was overly optimistic that it could be done. We felt we could train physicians, so we can train therapists in the very same way.

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shawsome12 t1_j848ei5 wrote

Even in therapy, sometimes it’s hard to uncover what is really causing your behavior. It “hides” so to speak. Covering up shame, or fear can inhibit the therapeutic professional’s treatment. Denial is a big factor too.

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MahatmaBuddah t1_j85t0p0 wrote

Very true! As a clinical child psychologist, I’ve often said 75% of my skill and ability to be helpful is who I was before I went to grad school and learned the theories and techniques of psychotherapy. Who I was, as a mature, patient, nonjudgmental, not make assumptions, kind of person. Grad school and training taught me how to Iisten better, tho, that’s for sure.

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Neurotic_Bakeder t1_j86u4lx wrote

This is mostly just a bad headline imo. The way they measured "training" was 1st versus 4th year psychology students.

However, my psych undergrad focused on psych research and literature, not counselling skills.

The article concludes saying that this study highlights the need for specific training around perspective taking and empathy for counselors, rather than hoping you just suddenly develop mentalization skills after reading 300 articles on abnormal psych or whatever. Don't get me wrong, I can read about rats pulling levers all day long, but I don't expect that to make me any better at helping a client breathe through a panic attack.

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ignigenaquintus t1_j87w52i wrote

If empathy is the key here, then we have a problem. We know due the literature of in-group bias that both men and women have more empathy for women, and the number of male psychologists have been reduced from 38% to 28% in the last decade, with male psychologists under 30 being only 5% of psychologists under 30.

We also know that there are between 15-20+ liberals per non liberal working in psychology, and that ideas like privilege and systemic discrimination reduce the empathy toward men.

Seems to me this could easily translate in a situation where the people that are going to need more help in the following decades are the ones that may be receiving less empathy and therefore less effective help.

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Unhappy_Gas_4376 t1_j85ihwg wrote

I would like to know if having gone through analysis or therapy oneself would increase mentalization. The article suggests that age is a factor in mentalization scores. If it is just a matter of life experience then undergoing therapy yourself should your ability to understand other peoples internal processes.

You used to have to go through your own therapy to become a psychiatrist, but I don't know if that is part of education in clinical psychology.

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DickRiculous t1_j89yvjo wrote

I will say that I do think therapy attracts this kind of high EQ person, however.

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FwibbFwibb t1_j8egbnr wrote

I have been seeing therapists for over a decade. I have had three that were men and three that were women. In all cases, the men wouldn't try to dig in to anything at all. Just ask "how have you been?" and the like. I would sheepishly respond "ok I guess...", clearly there were things I was having difficulty bringing up... but that would end it. I was OK. Next patient.

Imagine treating a physical ailment the same way. Just taking a patient's word for whether or not they feel "good".

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Commercial-Life-9998 t1_j8eivxh wrote

In a way I think this goes back to how we social ppl as children. Little girls derive satisfaction from play by relationships and sharing feelings. Little boys derive satisfaction from doing and building. Or least this is the gendered play we channel children into. Girls and women’s play is to find out what is up with their girlfriends. It just doesn’t feel like anything was accomplished unless we have delved into one another’s lives. To stop at I-am-fine, feels like a big failure for women. When there is beaning-counting and number-of-widgets-made, men feel I-am-fine, to be completely acceptable. Once physicians had to earn RVUs, there was an earth quake of difference in how treatment of mental healthcare was performed.

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