An exploration of four approaches to countertransference in drama therapy

This paper explores four drama therapy models in respect to their treatment of countertransference. This paper is in several sections. The first section traces the origin of the term 'countertransference' to Freud, and follows the development of this term until present day. The second section consists of four subsections, which each detail the contribution of one drama therapist towards our understanding and appreciation of countertransference. Each subsection provides background information about the theorist/drama therapist, details the theoretical model s/he has developed including his/her view of countertransference, presents excerpts from an interview with each theorist, and finally gives specific examples from published literature of how these drama therapists work with countertransference. This paper ends with a chart that cross-references all four models