Articulating the “Self”: Referring to clients in reflection sequences during Finnish psychotherapy sessions with client-made videos

Using data from Finnish psychotherapy sessions with client-made videos, we examine the linguistic and interactional construal of the “Self,” drawing on conversation analysis and interactional linguistics. We analyze references to clients in reflection sequences, during which the therapist and clients make observations about client-made videos. Our analysis shows that referential shifts during the reflection sequences' different phases are connected to the interactional goals of the therapy. When a client is addressed using second-person forms, the deictic center of the interaction is placed in the here-and-now of the therapy session, in contrast to the client-made video. When the focus is then shifted to a client in a video, the therapist initiates a third-person perspective, which often results in clients presenting their observations using third-person forms. The reflection sequences end with a constructive discussion in which clients typically return to the use of first-person forms but so that the reference expands to cover both the past and present selves, in contrast with the reflection sequences’ opening. Our study demonstrates that the choice of the referential expression in different local structures of interaction enables clients to phrase their experiences from varied vantage points and, consequently, see themselves from different perspectives.