ABSTRACT
There are two linked, but different procedures within the transactional analysis literature that directly address tragic script outcomes: escape-hatch closure and no-harm contracts. The key difference between escape-hatch closure (even time-limited closure) and no-harm contracts is that an escape-hatch closure is, by definition, a decisional process, and is ‘taken by the client for him/herself, with the therapist as witness, and is inherently non-changeable. A no-harm contract, like any other contract, is agreed between client and therapist and is changeable’. Escape-hatch closure is a process whereby the individual verbally makes a commitment to her/himself with the therapist acting as witness that no matter how bad things are, they will not kill or harm themselves, kill or harm others or go crazy. Attachment theory offers some interesting perspectives for consideration of escape hatches. Raising escape hatches prematurely in therapy can provoke alarm and confusion in the client.
