ABSTRACT

What follows is an introduction to dialogical sequence analysis (DSA) as a concept-based procedure for analysing client and therapist utterances. The methodological basis of such an approach differs greatly from the discourseoriented research techniques that are currently used in psychotherapy process research. DSA is based on employing a set of theoretical concepts to articulate the dialogical patterns that are embedded in the utterances. These concepts are quite complex. Hence, the technique requires a good command of the meaning of the concepts, which includes their history and the broader theoretical tradition to which they belong. In addition, because the concepts articulate relational configurations rather than particular features or elements, the progress and complexity of analysis will vary depending on the material that is examined. Consequently, it is not possible to generate straightforward methodical rules or procedures by which the analysis can be carried out in all cases. I will however include a DSA of the opening discourse from a psychotherapy assessment interview to illustrate how it works with a particular case.