ABSTRACT
Confrontation is a loaded word; it carries such negative connotations of `being told off', of angry con¯icts and so on that a number of people, therapists included, shrink inside when even the word is mentioned. In spite of all of this, sensitive and welltimed confrontation remains a potent therapeutic method. In discussing the need for confrontation to be made from a position of empathy and care, Masterson recommends the following:
Confrontation must be done intuitively and empathically and must `®t' the clinical material the client presents. It requires the therapist confront from a neutral, objective, emotional stance because it is clinically indicated, not out of anger or from his or her own personal needs, that is, to be aggressive and assertive, to direct, control, or admonish the patient.
