Our society is highly polarized by political and cultural issues. Understandably, someone undergoing therapy might want to know what views their therapist holds, or may feel concerned about what response they will get if they discuss their own views in therapy. How a therapist handles these issues may affect a client’s trust or sense of safety in therapy. Likewise, the way a therapist deals with political discussion can be useful or not for the therapy process.
In my therapy practice, I generally don’t share my own opinions about polarizing issues, unless I think that it serves a clear therapeutic purpose to do so. Instead, I provide an open space for people to talk freely, even if I disagree with their ideas. This is because it isn’t ethical to use my role as a therapist to promote a political view, or anything other than the well being of my clients, and I don’t want to interfere with my clients’ investigation into their own thoughts and feelings.
The goal of therapy is growth through self-exploration, and people’s opinions about polarizing topics can be included in that exploration, because like anything else, they are influenced by personal history and psychology. Societal problems often take on unconscious meaning, such as a representation of dynamics within one’s family of origin or a reminder of difficult experiences in one’s childhood. Social conflicts also evoke intense instinctual responses, such as fear and aggression that need to be understood.
I think it’s most important that my clients have an opportunity to explore the meaning of their views. I invite them to be curious about what they feel and think, and to get more in touch with what is happening inside of them. Even when external circumstances are very challenging, we have an opportunity to recognize how they are affecting us, so that we can face the situation with the most clarity and self-awareness that is possible for us.
For those who are ready, therapy can be an opportunity to look inwards and see where one’s opinions and feelings about the world are coming from. No matter how valid one’s views on any given topic may be, the beliefs and attitudes we adopt tend to be rooted in past feelings and experiences that we may not understand. If we are willing to be curious about our strongly held positions, and our feelings of righteousness or fear, we may gain new insight into ourselves and see things more clearly.
Not everyone is interested in working to understand the deepest truth about themselves, or willing to tolerate the vulnerability of self-exploration, but good therapy provides the possibility to uncover and clarify the real meaning of what we feel. Therapists may do a disservice to their clients if they have political debate, or simply help shore up their client’s existing positions, while avoiding the deeper issues involved.
To facilitate an exploration of the meaning of their clients’ views, therapists need to have examined the psychology underlying their own opinions, and their own emotional reactivity in relation to politics. Therapists have a responsibility to try to recognize their blind spots, and this includes entrenched positions and feelings about politics that may impact their clinical work.
I also believe it is helpful for therapists to avoid limiting themselves to an “information bubble,” in which they are only exposed to people and news sources which reinforce their existing views, making it harder for them to understand those who think differently. Therapists should be able to tolerate differences of opinion and recognize that everyone’s positions make sense based upon their life experience, level of understanding, and individual psychological dynamics.
Because of our polarized political climate, I’ve tried to provide a sense of how I work with these issues when they come up in therapy, and explain the introspective, non-judgmental approach that I think it is helpful for therapists to take. If my clients choose to discuss their views, I will be respectful and empathize with their concerns, while also being curious about the deeper meaning of what they are saying.
