Alliance ruptures, impasses, and enactments: a relational perspective.

Alliance ruptures, impasses, and transference-countertransference enactments are inevitable in therapy. A growing body of evidence suggests that repairing ruptures in the alliance is related to positive outcome (Safran, Muran, & Eubanks-Carter, 2011). Our research program has led to the development of training methods to enhance therapists' abilities to detect and work constructively with alliance ruptures and negative therapeutic process (Safran et al., 2014). This article outlines relevant theoretical underpinnings, intervention principles, and empirical findings.