The therapeutic relationship has been recognized by psychotherapy researchers and clinicians alike as playing a central role in the process and outcome of psychotherapy. This book presents innovative investigations of the therapeutic relationship focusing on various relationship mechanisms as they relate to changing processes and outcomes. A variety of perspectives on the therapeutic relationship are provided through different research methods, including quantitative and qualitative methods, and divergence in psychotherapy orientations, including psychodynamic, interpersonal, cognitive-behavioural therapy, emotion-focused process experiential therapy, narrative therapy, and attachment-based family therapy. The chapters, written by leading psychotherapy researchers, present cutting-edge empirical studies that apply innovative methods in order to: study process-outcome links; explore in session processes that address the question of how the therapeutic relationship heals; examine the contributions of clients and therapists to the therapeutic relationship; and suggest practical implications for training therapists in psychotherapy relationships that work. Research on the therapeutic relationship has been identified as a natural arena for bridging the gap between research and clinical practice, and will be of particular interest to practicing clinicians. This book was originally published as a special issue of Psychotherapy Research.

The therapeutic relationship has been recognized by psychotherapy researchers and clinicians alike as playing a central role in the process and outcome of psychotherapy. This book presents innovative investigations of the therapeutic relationship focusing on various relationship mechanisms as they relate to changing processes and outcomes. A variety of perspectives on the therapeutic relationship are provided through different research methods, including quantitative and qualitative methods, and divergence in psychotherapy orientations, including psychodynamic, interpersonal, cognitive-behavioural therapy, emotion-focused process experiential therapy, narrative therapy, and attachment-based family therapy. The chapters, written by leading psychotherapy researchers, present cutting-edge empirical studies that apply innovative methods in order to: study process-outcome links; explore in session processes that address the question of how the therapeutic relationship heals; examine the contributions of clients and therapists to the therapeutic relationship; and suggest practical implications for training therapists in psychotherapy relationships that work. Research on the therapeutic relationship has been identified as a natural arena for bridging the gap between research and clinical practice, and will be of particular interest to practicing clinicians. This book was originally published as a special issue of Psychotherapy Research.

What makes therapy work? Clearly, the therapeutic alliance is an important component of a successful relationship between therapist and client, but how does it fit into the relationship more broadly conceived? A better question might be “What works with whom and in which circumstances? In this unique book, master clinicians and psychotherapy researchers examine how technique and the therapeutic relationship are inseparably intertwined.  Using a variety of theoretical and research “lenses� and drawing on various models of psychotherapy including cognitive behavioral therapy, emotion‑focused therapy, and brief family therapy, the contributors discuss the factors affecting client outcomes. The link between relationship processes and technique is bought to life in a rich array of engaging case studies that demonstrate how successful therapists negotiate the relationship, make key moment‑to‑moment decisions, and promote positive change in their clients.