I was intrigued by a recent reading on the psychodynamics of leadership that referred to “core conflictual relationship themes” (CCRTs) (Luborsky & Crits-Christoph, 1998) in regard to J. McDougall’s “Focus on the Inner Theatre” (Northouse, 2016, p. 301). Northouse summarized that “within the inner theatre, certain relationship themes develop over time, themes rooted in our deepest wishes, needs and goals, which contribute to our unique personality style” (Northouse, p. 301). Usually rooted in childhood, CCRTs are carried into adulthood, and, until they are consciously dealt with –– in psychotherapy or in a deep understanding of oneself –– I believe they continue to influence relationships, all relationships, personal and professional.
Freud referred to these repeated themes in relationships in his theory of transference:
This transference is ambivalent: it comprises positive (affectionate) as well as
negative (hostile) attitudes towards the analyst, who as a rule is put in the place
of one or other of the patient’s parents, his father or mother. (Sigmund Freud:
An Outline of Psychoanalysis – 1940.)
Just because they are deeply entrenched in our psyche doesn’t mean patterns of transference feel positive, good or even comfortable. In Looking for Ground: Countertransference and the Problem of Value in Psychoanalysis, author Peter G.M. Carnochan explained that the “drive toward the familiar does not stem from” the pursuit of pleasure “but from the constricting force of fear” (Carnochan, 2001, p. 352)
I am not a psychiatrist, but I wonder if CCRTs sometimes dictate personal relationships and may explain the abused woman finding aggressive partner after aggressive partner. It’s what she expects, what she is used to, what she thinks she deserves. It’s a self-fulfilling prophecy that began in childhood. Until she looks back on her childhood, her relationship with her parents, with an objective view, she will never understand why she repeats these patterns. I believe it’s possible CCRTs also dictate professional relationships and may explain why people stay in unrewarding jobs.
In work, “replete with superior and subordinate relationships,” we use these CCRTs in our interactions with others and “rightly or wrongly anticipate how others will react … then react to their perceived reactions, and not to their actual reactions” (Northouse, p. 302). As Northouse explains, these interactions are not only ineffectual, they can be dysfunctional.
Our goal as an individual is to identify our own CCRTs and overcome them so we can live productive, happy lives. Our goal as leaders is to do the same for ourselves AND to identify them in followers so we can have a productive working relationship.
I had a subordinate once, a woman who typed copy before I edited it, who became irrationally threatened whenever I corrected her work and indignantly shot back … being highly critical about me and my work, to take the attention from the original, legitimate concern. She felt attacked. In retrospect I wonder if this was a CCRT and what I could have done, had I known that, to diffuse each situation.
Like a therapist, perhaps leaders need to, “rather than attempting, however subtly, to dissuade that patient (follower) from his or her own felt experience (as to correct “misinterpretations”) seeks instead to locate” the subordinate’s “vantage point and its inherent legitimacy.” In that way the leader would recognize the CCRT, try to see the situation from the follower’s perspective and become an ally in the CCRT instead of a perceived bully. In the case of the typist, perhaps I could have come from the vantage point of a supporter, a good parent if you will, and told her how wonderful her work was then let her read it back to find her own mistakes. (Schwaber)
It may be striking, Schwaber writes, how behaviors may improve “when the inner world is recognized.”
I am not suggesting that we as leaders become psychotherapists. Just as CCRTs could prove crippling in a work situation, so could hyper analysis of the CCRTs and psychodynamic undercurrents. We must set boundaries. But, I would suggest being aware of the phenomenon could prove helpful in many situations.
References:
Carnochan, P. (2001). Looking for Ground: Countertransference and the Problem of Value in Psychoanalysis. Hillsdale, N.J., Analytic Press. Retrieved Feb. 3, 2016, from https://books.google.com/books?id=JfrSGZe345IC&pg=PA351&lpg=PA351&dq=repeating+bad+relationships,+transference&source=bl&ots=B4KjZE63mT&sig=z9zQlzzMB6mXRI-_GHBwKce5v-M&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj9jYK1l9zKAhUquoMKHRb-B2gQ6AEIKTAC#v=onepage&q&f=false
Freud, S. (1940) An Outline of Psychoanalysis. Published © 2002-2015, AROPA. Retrieved Feb. 3, 2016, from: http://www.freudfile.org/psychoanalysis/transference.html
Luborsky, L., and Crits-Christoph, P. (1998). Understanding Transference: The core conflictual relationship theme method. Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Organization.
Northouse, P. G. (2016). Leadership: Theory and Practice (7th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.
Schwaber, Evelyne Albrecht, MD; Gabbard, Glen O, MD; Horowitz, Mardi J, MD A Different Perspective in Listening: Understanding Transference, The American Journal of Psychiatry; Oct 2009; 166, 10; ProQuest pg. 1188