Influence of Personal Faith on Psychotherapist’s Professional Activity

Abstract

The article presents the main results of the study of influence of personal faith on psychotherapist’s professional activities.The empirical analysis is based on interviews with practicing Orthodox psychotherapists, conducted in accordance with a specially developed procedure. The author makes a conclusion about the presence of trends in the practice of Orthodox therapists to one of the two poles, distinguished by the degree of directivity, the role of the therapist and their methods. The first pole — pastoral counseling, second — psychotherapy in a spiritual dimension.

Keywords

• Orthodox psychotherapy
• an Orthodox psychotherapist
• Orthodox an- thropology
• the psychotherapeutic process