1st March 2017
Transference and misuse of authority
I am saddened when I read about cases where people in authority have misused that authority and ill treated people. As I write this, the latest scandal is connected with Oxfam and other aid agencies. Recently we have had politicians, media people and sports people being hauled over the coals.
Of course the perpetrators of these acts should know that it is wrong, should do something about their impulses and should face just punishment for what they have done. But how has it come about that their behaviour was overlooked?
Many of the perpetrators have authority within organisations. Do not those organisations have a duty of care towards their employees or volunteers? Should not they be supporting and monitoring their staff, giving them appropriate training, supportive, professional supervision and therapy if needed, so that they do not have or give into abusive tendencies?
If not, everyone concerned suffers, the victims in the first place then the perpetrators and the organisation when things eventually comes to light. And even if they don’t come to light, which is worse for the victims, the perpetrators and the unsupportive organisations by their very weaknesses will not be making the best of things.
The central issues are, I believe, the misuse of control and authority and behaviours rooted in transference.
People, in my experience as a psychotherapist, trainer and political activist, misuse control and authority when they lack genuine self confidence and self empowerment. Generally people are unaware of this lack, particularly when they have some authority, and behave in ways that feel natural to them. They will position themselves within hierarchies in which they will tend to abuse people whom they feel are “down hierarchy” and allow themselves to be abused by those who are “up hierarchy”.
In my experience the most effective way of addressing this is through in depth assertiveness training. This is training that goes beyond informing people about assertiveness and assertive techniques. It is training that is long enough, in my experience some 30 hours of training over 15 weeks, and rooted in trainees day to day experiences. It is also, importantly, training that addresses feelings and permits and values the expression of emotions. It is training that enable people to change in ways that they feel, deeply, more confident, assertive and in their own power.
I am suggesting that it becomes the norm that everyone who works in positions of authority who support vulnerable people is expected to participate in such training.
As a psychotherapist I expect to be having my own therapy. This is so that I can address the issues and feelings that come up for me in my work with clients, particularly the potentially intense feelings that can arise from transference. People working in positions of authority, others working with people who are relatively vulnerable, teachers for instance, and, unfortunately, a good many therapists do not have any form of therapeutic support. It is no wonder that some of them end up in inappropriate intimate relationships with people they are supposed to be supporting.
Therapy, or doing our own psychological work, does not have to be expensive. I co-counsel with Co-Counselling International (CCI). The basic training to be a co-counsellor is generally low cost – and people within organisations could become teachers. After that co-counselling sessions are free, co-counsellors just take equal turns to be client and counsellor.
CCI is a strictly peer network with, in general, no formal hierarchy. CCI co-counselling is very empowering and handling transference is embedded in the work.
So my second suggestion is that it becomes the norm for everyone who works in positions of authority or who support vulnerable people to have some form of ongoing therapeutic support. This could be through co-counselling or some similar form of peer support. Or it could be based on professional supervision using experiential, holistic learning (as opposed to managerial supervision).
I believe that these two steps, making assertiveness training and therapeutic support the norm for everyone who works in positions of authority or who support vulnerable people, would greatly enhance the quality and safety of their work.