ABSTRACT
In the United States the interest in the therapeutic alliance, a particular object relationship between patient and analyst was stimulated by the development of ego psychology. The maintenance of the therapeutic alliance was dependent on bringing about a split between an experiencing ego and a more reasonable, detached, and observing ego in order to deal with the resistance. This was to be facilitated by the patient's rational wish to cooperate with the analyst in order to overcome his suffering and by "his ability to follow the instructions and insights of the analyst. The stance of sustained empathic inquiry consolidates the therapeutic alliance as it enhances and extends the domain of safety and harmony within the intersubjective field. The continuing articulation and consolidation of subjective reality is, however, only a part of the therapeutic experience. The additional goal of the therapeutic alliance is the transformation of subjective experience.
