How female therapists and their patients deal with being a disputable, unimaginable, or occasional Swede: Explorations of similarity of nonprivilege

Abstract

In this qualitative study, conducted in Sweden, the authors investigated therapists´ experiences of therapeutic dyads in which both therapist and patient identified with a non-normative ethnicity, migration experience, racial identity, or experience of racialization. Inclusion criteria were based on the concepts of "similarity of nonprivilege" (Fors, 2018) and on Mattsson´s (2005) concept of "disputable, unimaginable, or occasional Swedes," inspired by critical whiteness studies. Eight semistructured interviews with female psychologists and psychotherapists were conducted. Findings were illustrated by the Minority Matrix, showing how therapists navigate sameness versus too much closeness, and manage the role of being a bridge between a minority position and Swedish society.