MANAGEMENT OF DEPENDENCY AND GENDER DIFFERENCE IN PSYCHOTHERAPY IN PAKISTAN

Abstract

The present study was conducted to investigate the "Management of Dependency and Gender Difference in Psychotherapy in Pakistan". Twelve Male and Twelve Female clients in the two categories of Remainers and Terminators, in equal numbers, were included in the study.Content analysis of the first two recorded therapeutic sessions of each client was conduced.highly significant level of inter-rater reliability was obtained. Sign test was used to find out the difference between the ratio of approach and avoidance interventions of the therapist. Mannwhitney U test was applied to determine the statistical significance of the difference between the Remainers and the Terminators in the dependency and the Gender difference in the two categories with respect to approach and avoidance of therapist. The results revealed that approach interventions used in the first two therapeutic sessions led to an increase in the frequency of the dependency bids of the clients, and the clients tended to be a Remainer, while with avoidance interventions the frequency of dependency bids decreased and the client tend to be a Terminator. It was also found that the Female clients expressed more dependency than the Male Remainers but the dependency expressions of the Male Terminators exceeded the dependency expressions of the Male Remainers and the Female Terminators.The reasons are located in the interventions of the therapist. Male Remainers were more approached and less avoided than the Male Remainers and the Female Remainers and the Terminators. Female Remainers were more approached and less avoided than the Male and the Female Terminators. The Female Terminators were the least approached and the most avoided clients in the study.It appears that the interventions used by the psychotherapist play a significant role in the management of dependency and the gender difference in psychotherapy in Pakistan. Male clients require more approach approval than Female clients. Avoidance of dependency bids leads to termination of psychotherapy irrespective of sex of the client.