An Introductory Guide to Skillful Therapist Positioning

Abstract

This article describes the concept of therapist positioning in a therapeutic relationship. It suggests that therapists retain flexibility of their positioning and have the capacity to skillfully choose positioning that optimizes responsiveness, with the aim of enhancing collaboration in the relationship with the client. While there are different therapeutic models with characteristic ways for therapists to communicate, the concept of therapist positioning is relevant across all of them. There is no “one size fits all” approach that is consistently responsive for individual clients and no one therapy approach that can guarantee a relationship in a spirit of collaboration with every client. We, the authors, suggest that the concepts and skills of therapist positioning set out a way of understanding that can improve therapists' practice. The aim of this article is to describe how this can be accomplished.