Current Behavioral Models of Client and Consultee Resistance: A Critical Review

Resistance is the phenomena that occurs in the therapeutic relationship when the patient refuses to complete tasks assigned by the therapist which would benefit the patient in improving their psychological situation. Resistance is also used to describe situations in the consulting relationship where the consultee does not do what the consultant suggests. Often resistance leads to poor treatment integrity and/or staff burn out. As a result, this resistance is a factor that warrants a behavioral interpretation and investigation. Currently several behavioral models of resistance exist. In this paper, we explore each of these models and critiquethe logical and empirical support. Future research directions will be discussed.