Counter-transference

A necessary part of psychoanalytic therapy, counter transference involves the unconscious needs and conflicts of the [analyst]

, and the relationship which a particular patient and patient's treatment produces with some object from the analyst's past. These (usually partial and short lived) identifications enable the analyst to comprehend confusing productions of the patient. Long-lasting and deep-rooted counter transference due to personality disturbance of the analyst, however, are counterproductive to treating a patient's problems.