Estimated reading time: 14–16 minutes

What You Will Learn

• Why “resistance” is not a flaw in the client, but meaningful psychological information

• How TEAM-CBT reframes ambivalence as a signal rather than an obstacle

• What outcome resistance is and why change can feel threatening—even when it’s desired

• How addressing resistance early strengthens the therapeutic alliance

• Practical examples of how TEAM-CBT works with resistance instead of against it

• Why this reframing leads to faster, deeper, and more sustainable change

Introduction: Rethinking Resistance in Therapy

In many therapeutic traditions, resistance has long been treated as a problem to overcome. When clients cancel sessions, avoid homework, intellectualize feelings, or say “I know this doesn’t make sense, but…,” these behaviors are often framed as obstacles to progress. The unspoken message can be subtle but powerful: something is getting in the way of change, and we need to push through it.

TEAM-CBT turns this assumption on its head.

Rather than viewing resistance as opposition, TEAM-CBT understands it as meaningful information—a signal that part of the client has good reasons not to change, at least not yet. From this perspective, resistance is not the enemy of therapy. Ignoring it is.

Developed by David Burns, TEAM-CBT (Testing, Empathy, Agenda Setting, Methods) builds resistance into the heart of the therapeutic process. It does not rush past ambivalence in the name of insight or technique. Instead, it slows down, listens carefully, and asks a radical question:

What does this resistance protect?

When therapists learn to work with resistance instead of against it, the therapeutic relationship shifts. Power struggles dissolve. Clients feel understood rather than corrected. And paradoxically, change becomes easier—not harder.

The Traditional View: Resistance as a Barrier

Historically, resistance has often been conceptualized as:

• Lack of motivation

• Fear of change

• Defensiveness or avoidance

• Unconscious opposition to insight

• Noncompliance with treatment

In practice, this can lead therapists to:

• Push harder when clients hesitate

• Persuade clients why change is “good for them”

• Interpret resistance as pathology

• Attribute stalled progress to client unwillingness

Even well-intentioned encouragement can feel invalidating. Clients may experience therapy as something being done to them rather than with them. Over time, this dynamic can erode trust and reinforce the very ambivalence therapy aims to resolve.

TEAM-CBT offers a different lens—one that treats resistance not as a blockage, but as a map.

Resistance as Information, Not Opposition

In TEAM-CBT, resistance is understood as data. It provides insight into the client’s values, fears, needs, and internal conflicts.

When a client resists change, they are often protecting something important:

• A sense of identity

• A coping strategy that once ensured survival

• A relationship pattern that provides familiarity

• A belief system that offers meaning or safety

For example:

• Depression may protect a client from overwhelming expectations

• Anxiety may prevent risky decisions that once led to harm

• Anger may serve as armor against vulnerability

• Procrastination may preserve autonomy in environments that feel controlling

From this viewpoint, resistance becomes understandable—even reasonable.

TEAM-CBT does not ask, “How do we get rid of this resistance?”
It asks, “Why does this resistance make sense?”

Outcome Resistance: When Change Feels Dangerous

One of TEAM-CBT’s most important contributions is its clear articulation of outcome resistance.

Outcome resistance occurs when clients consciously want relief from their symptoms, but unconsciously—or ambivalently—fear the consequences of getting better.

At first glance, this seems paradoxical. Why would someone resist improvement?

Because change always has costs, not just benefits.

Clients may fear that if they change:

• Others will expect more from them

• They will lose sympathy or support

• They will have to face difficult decisions

• They will no longer have an explanation for pain

• Their sense of self will shift in unsettling ways

A client might say:

“I want to stop being anxious.”
But another part of them whispers:
“If I’m not anxious, I might take risks that scare me—or disappoint others.”

TEAM-CBT treats this ambivalence with respect, not confrontation.

Agenda Setting: Making Resistance Explicit

The A in TEAM-CBT stands for Agenda Setting, and it is here that resistance is addressed most directly—and most compassionately.

Instead of persuading clients to change, therapists invite them to explore:

• What they like about the problem

• What the problem helps them avoid

• What might get worse if the problem disappeared

This is often done through structured but collaborative dialogue, sometimes called “paradoxical agenda setting.” The therapist may ask:

• “What are some reasons not to change?”

• “What does this problem do for you?”

• “What would you lose if things improved?”

Far from increasing resistance, these questions often lead to relief. Clients feel seen in their ambivalence rather than judged for it.

When resistance is named openly, it loses its covert power.

The Shift in the Therapeutic Relationship

One of the most profound effects of reframing resistance is the transformation of the therapeutic alliance.

Instead of:

• Therapist = agent of change

• Client = obstacle to overcome

TEAM-CBT creates:

• Therapist and client as collaborators

• Resistance as a shared puzzle

This shift reduces defensiveness on both sides. Clients no longer need to protect their symptoms from being “taken away.” Therapists no longer feel pressured to convince, fix, or push.

The relationship becomes more egalitarian, more honest, and more humane.

Empathy First: Why Understanding Precedes Change

Before any techniques are applied, TEAM-CBT emphasizes deep empathy. Resistance often intensifies when clients feel misunderstood.

Empathy in TEAM-CBT is not superficial reassurance. It involves accurately reflecting:

• The pain of the problem

• The reasons for holding onto it

• The emotional logic behind ambivalence

When clients feel fully understood, their internal debate softens. Change becomes a choice rather than a demand.

In this way, empathy is not separate from change—it is the foundation of it.

From Resistance to Readiness

A key insight of TEAM-CBT is that readiness cannot be forced. It emerges when clients feel:

• Understood

• Respected

• In control of the pace and direction of therapy

When outcome resistance is resolved, motivation often appears spontaneously. Clients begin to say things like:

• “I think I’m ready to try something different.”

• “I never realized how much this problem was protecting me.”

• “Now I actually want to change.”

At this point, therapeutic methods become far more effective—because they are aligned with the client’s values rather than imposed upon them.

Why Reframing Resistance Leads to Better Outcomes

By treating resistance as meaningful information, TEAM-CBT achieves several advantages:

• Faster engagement and trust-building

• Fewer power struggles

• Reduced dropout rates

• Deeper emotional insight

• More durable change

Clients are not pushed into change before they are ready. Instead, readiness is cultivated through understanding.

In a broader sense, this approach reflects a core principle of well-being science: sustainable change happens when people feel safe, autonomous, and understood.

Resistance Through the PERMA-V Lens

From a PERMA-V perspective, resistance often reflects threats to:

• Meaning (Who will I be if I change?)

• Relationships (How will others respond?)

• Vitality (Will change exhaust me?)

• Achievement (What new standards will I face?)

TEAM-CBT aligns naturally with this model by addressing resistance at the level of values, identity, and relational safety—not just symptoms.

Conclusion: Resistance as Wisdom in Disguise

Resistance is not stubbornness.
It is not failure.
And it is not something to be defeated.

In TEAM-CBT, resistance is treated as wisdom in disguise—a signal that something important is at stake. When therapists learn to listen rather than argue, to collaborate rather than persuade, resistance transforms from an obstacle into a guide.

By reframing ambivalence as meaningful information, TEAM-CBT restores dignity to the change process and humanity to the therapeutic relationship.

And in doing so, it reminds us of a simple but powerful truth:

People don’t resist change.
They resist unsafe change.

References

• Burns, D. D. (2020). Feeling Great: The Revolutionary New Treatment for Depression and Anxiety. PESI Publishing.

• Burns, D. D. (1980). Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy. HarperCollins.

• Miller, W. R., & Rollnick, S. (2013). Motivational Interviewing: Helping People Change (3rd ed.). Guilford Press.

• Norcross, J. C., & Wampold, B. E. (2019). Relationships and responsiveness in psychotherapy. Psychotherapy, 56(4), 445–458.

• Prochaska, J. O., & DiClemente, C. C. (1983). Stages and processes of self-change. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 51(3), 390–395.