Tools & Tips
Why kindness makes psychologists nervous.
In an Ode Magazine article from November 2007, David Servan-Schreiber reflects on how kindness does not always get high marks in psychotherapy. He says "kindness" is regarded as "too soft" by his colleagues (psychiatrists and psychologists). They prefer "benevolent neutrality." But the kindness that Servan-Schreiber is talking about is demonstrated with simple things, like handing over a box of tissues, speaking to a patient gently and reassuringly, or simply staying by their side for a little longer - things that require a certain tenderness and compassion that cannot be accomplished with an approach of "benevolent neutrality." He brings up an extremely valid point: Kindness is, all by itself, a powerful therapeutic tool - especially in everyday relationships.