Table Of ContentThis unique integration of psychotherapeutic theories and practical methods E
displays the central role of the therapeutic relationship in the healing process. r
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‘I love reading this book. It is an essential text in my counselling and psychotherapy courses. n
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I find the relational orientation to be informative, powerful, and comprehensive while the style
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of writing makes the concepts and methods easy for trainees to learn. The various examples n
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of actual therapy help my trainees to be effective therapists and also help me to be a better
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trainer and supervisor.’
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Elena Maria Guarrella, trainer and supervisor, Istituto di Analisi Transazionale u
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Integrativa, Roma, Italy s
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‘This splendid book is ideal for the experienced psychotherapist and mental health counsellor d
while also serving as an important professional guide for someone new to the professions.
It conveys Richard Erskine’s and Janet Moursund’s very meaningful philosophy, theory, and
methods of relational psychotherapy. The authors address the therapeutic relationship with
respect, profundity, and hope. The relevant case examples make the theory come alive. It was
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a pleasure to read this book and learn from two master psychotherapists.’
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Amaia Mauriz Etxabe, licensed clinical psychologist, certified integrative e
psychotherapist, trainer and supervisor; Professor of Psychology, Deusto University; A
Director, BIOS Institute for Integrative Psychotherapy, Bilbao, Spain r
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‘I love this book. The writing is simple, yet the authors cover a vast knowledge of psychotherapy
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and counselling while offering practical guidelines on how to work with our clients. Throughout
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this book, I was accompanied in understanding how authentic relationships are achieved,
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maintained, and repaired when disrupted. The transcripts of actual therapy sessions, and the
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authors’ explanations, reveal how a relationally focused integrative psychotherapy enhances i
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our clients’ healing and wellbeing. This book is a must-read for all mental health practitioners.’
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Karen Cesarano, chartered psychologist and psychotherapist; trainer and supervisor, c
International Integrative Psychotherapy Association e
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Richard G. Erskine, PhD, Training Director at the Institute for Integrative Psychotherapy, is a R
clinical psychologist with five decades of experience in the clinical practice and teaching of e
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psychotherapy. a
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Janet P. Moursund, PhD, founder of the Center for Community Counseling, is a retired o
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psychotherapist and professor of counselling psychology.
s The Art and Science of Relationship
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The Practice of Integrative Psychotherapy
Cover image: Jack Frog/Shutterstock
ISBN 978-1-80-013137-8
Richard G. Erskine and Janet P. Moursund
The ArT And Science of relATionShip
The ArT And Science
of relATionShip
The Practice of Integrative Psychotherapy
Richard G. Erskine & Janet P. Moursund
Originally published in 2004 as Integrative Psychotherapy: The Art and Science of Relationship by Thomson: Brooks/Cole
Reissued in 2022 by
Phoenix Publishing House Ltd
62 Bucknell Road
Bicester
Oxfordshire OX26 2DS
Copyright © 2022 by Richard G. Erskine & Janet P. Moursund
The right of Richard G. Erskine & Janet P. Moursund to be identified as the authors of this work have been
asserted in accordance with §§ 77 and 78 of the Copyright Design and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in
any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written
permission of the publisher.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A C.I.P. for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN-13: 978-1-80013-137-8
Typeset by vPrompt eServices Pvt Ltd, India
www.firingthemind.com
Without the feedback and encouragement of the members of the Professional Development
Seminar of the Institute for Integrative Psychotherapy, this book would not have been
written. Their collective wisdom has helped to shape our thinking, and their support has
kept us going through the difficult patches. They are our colleagues and our friends,
and we are deeply grateful to them:
Vincent Barone
Fred Clark
Joan D’Amico
Landy Gobes
Burkhard Hofmann
Fred Hufford
Peter Kingan
Joan Lourie
Carol Merle-Fishman
Marye O’Reilly-Knapp
Linda Perrin
Elizabeth Richards
Damon-Arthur Wadsworth
Martha Walrath
Joshua Zavin
contents
About the authors xi
Preface xiii
Introduction xvii
Part I
Theoretical Foundations
1. Development of integrative psychotherapy 3
The roots and beyond 4
Modern psychotherapies 7
Eclecticism and integration 10
Principles of relationship-focused integrative psychotherapy 11
Relationship 14
Summary 17
2. Script, repression, and contact distortion 19
Schemas and script 21
The function of script 23
viii Contents
Maintaining the script system 25
The consequences of script, repression, and contact disruption 32
The widening spiral 33
Summary 35
3. Relationship and human development 37
The early experience of relationship 38
The concept of relational needs 44
Development and healthy relationships 49
Development and unhealthy relationships 52
Trauma and its consequences 54
Summary 59
Part II
Therapeutic Interventions
4. Healing the hurts 63
A set of interlocking systems 63
The role of relationship in the healing process 69
Relationship and the facets of growth and change 75
Accessibility 77
Summary 81
5. Creating a therapeutic relationship 83
Developing therapeutic personhood 86
Symmetry and asymmetry 91
Empathy 94
Summary 101
6. Beyond empathy 103
Attunement 104
Inquiry 120
Contents ix
Involvement 124
Summary 129
7. Beginning the work 131
First-session tasks 131
Establishing a safe working environment 132
The decision to work together 138
The therapeutic contract 140
Saying good-bye 148
Summary 149
8. Moving in 151
Affect and awareness 152
Fear and anxiety 156
Resistance and repression 157
Accessing 164
Summary 168
9. Therapeutic interventions 169
Intervention guidelines 169
Interpretation 172
Enactment and experiment 176
Regression 179
Behavioral interventions 187
Summary 189
10. A focus on relationship 191
Three relational concerns 192
Transference and countertransference revisited 193
Touch 197
Therapist error 199
