An experience of Psychological Scaffolding in Pediatrics: functions of Joint Listening Settings

Psychological Scaffolding to the Doctor – Patient Relationship (Freda, Dicé & De Luca Picione, 2015; Freda & Dicé, 2015; Freda et al., 2013) is an intervention of clinical psychology aimed to promote dialogic and relational skills in all participants. In our experience, it appeared useful to integrate some psychological dimensions within medical practice, in order to expand new dialogic possibilities helpful to recognize the informative function of emotions, essential to the care. We already presented an intervention in pediatric endocrinology with children with Disorders of Sex Development and their families (Freda, Dicé & De Luca Picione, 2015; Dicè & Auricchio, 2012); pediatrics is a complext contest that we represented as a triangle (Freda & Dicé, 2015) because, during each visit, there are (at least) three partecipants (a pediatrician, a mother, a child) each one with his/her positions, needs, questions, concerns. Here, we discuss a specific part of our intervention, rather criteria we used for structuring specific setting called "Joint Listening Setting" (doctor, psychologist, users), useful to facilitate dialogue between all partecipants. So, we describe their specific functions and some of them are: recognition of the plurality of points of view, strengthening dialogic resources, focus on feelings, transformation of informations in resources of meaning, monitoring of the identity of the Doctor – Patient relationship. We believe that these settings, with their transformative value, can facilitate an opening of dialogic exchanges, a better understanding of the diagnosis, expressions of concerns and a decision-making process shared during the treatment. So, an intervention of Psychological Scaffolding can contribute to a gradual construction of competence in partecipants, facilitating the dialogue between codes of medicine, psychology and daily life, helping the Doctor – Patient Relationiship to share meanings and decisions about the child’s condition