The effect of therapist synchrony and affect on child behavior change in therapy

This research is a process study of the impact of therapist behavior on child behavior change within therapy sessions. We focused on therapist synchrony and affective expression and then evaluated subsequent continuity of child behavior. We hypothesized that therapist synchrony would promote continuity, with nonsynchrony promoting change, and that this synchronous behavior would be more powerful than therapist affect. Consistent with our hypothesis, we found trends suggesting therapist behavior which seemed to have the greatest impact on child behavior was synchrony. Change in child behavior was higher following therapist nonsynchrony. This research supported a more limited definition of synchrony, where the therapist response was congruent with the content of the child's statements. Therapist emotionality and affect did appear to impact on child behavior, and may potentiate the effects of synchrony. We also hypothesized that the level of synchrony would increase as therapist and child spent time together. This hypothesis was not supported, as the level of synchrony appeared constant across sessions.