The term used to describe when a client unconsciously projects feelings about a significant person onto the therapist is:

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Transference is when the client unconsciously redirects emotions and expectations from significant people in their life, usually parents or caregivers, onto the therapist. This happens without the client realizing they’re doing it, and it reveals how past relationships shape the present therapeutic relationship. The feelings can be positive or negative, such as affection, anger, or dependency, and examining these reactions helps uncover unresolved conflicts from the past. This differs from countertransference, which is the therapist’s own emotional response to the client, not the client’s. It also differs from projection, where a person attributes their own unacceptable feelings to others, and from repression, which is pushing distressing thoughts out of awareness rather than directing emotions toward the therapist. For example, a client might treat the therapist like a demanding parent, reacting with anger or longing as if the parent were present.