In 1957 Carl Rogers, one of the founders of humanistic psychology and psychotherapy wrote this:

To sense the client’s private world as if it were your own, but without ever losing the “as if” quality—this is empathy, and this seems essential to therapy. To sense the client’s anger, fear, or confusion as if it were your own, yet without your own anger, fear, or confusion getting bound up in it, is the condition we are endeavoring to describe.

“Over-identifying with the patient,” Rogers warns, may “distort understanding” and thus would “threaten” the entire “therapeutic process.”

Avoiding enmeshment has always been crucial for practicing affective (and cognitive) empathy in counseling.

Keywords:

Carl Rogers: Carl Rogers was an influential American psychologist and psychotherapist. He is considered one of the founders of humanistic psychology and is known for his person-centered approach to therapy.

Humanistic psychology: Humanistic psychology is a branch of psychology that emphasizes individual growth, self-determination, and personal experiences. It focuses on human potential, self-actualization, and the inherent worth and value of individuals.

Psychotherapy: Psychotherapy refers to a range of therapeutic approaches that aim to improve mental health and well-being. It involves communication between a trained therapist and a client to explore thoughts, feelings, and behaviors and to facilitate positive changes.

Enmeshment: a psychological term that refers to a type of unhealthy relationship dynamic characterized by blurred boundaries, lack of individual autonomy, and high levels of emotional dependency. It often involves a high degree of interdependence and fusion between individuals, resulting in limited personal differentiation and difficulty in maintaining healthy relationships outside the enmeshed system.