A close look at therapist contributions to narrative-emotion shifting in a case illustration of brief dynamic therapy.

In a secondary analysis of Friedlander et al.'s [(2018). "If those tears could talk, what would they say?" multi-method analysis of a corrective experience in brief dynamic therapy. , 28, 217-234. doi:10.1080/10503307.2016.1184350] case study of Hanna Levenson's (from APA's Psychotherapy in Six Sessions DVD series), we re-visited the Narrative-Emotion Process Coding (Angus, L. E., Boritz, T., Bryntwick, E., Carpenter, N., Macaulay, C., & Khattra, J. (2017). The Narrative-Emotion Process Coding System 2.0: A multi-methodological approach to identifying and assessing narrative-emotion process markers in psychotherapy. , 27, 253-269. doi:10.1080/10503307.2016.1238525) to identify specific therapist behaviors that may have facilitated the client's movement from expressing mostly Problem markers in early sessions to expressing considerably more Transition and Change markers in later sessions. Using open coding and constant comparison qualitative methods, we identified Levenson's behaviors immediately preceding the client's "change shifts" (Problem → Transition/Change and Transition → Change) and "problem shifts" (Transition/Change → Problem). Compared to problem shifts, change shifts were preceded by more therapist behavior reflecting Attaching New Meaning (e.g., ) and Exploring/Expanding emotions (e.g., ), cognitions (e.g., ) and motivation (e.g., ). In this successful case, facilitative therapist behavior reflected common therapeutic responses (e.g., ) as well as responses characteristic of brief dynamic therapy (e.g., ) and the therapist's personal style (e.g., ).