Rupture & Repair: Why Breaks in Alliance Can Be Opportunities for Growth with Dr. Catherine Eubanks

Catherine Eubanks, PhD, discusses recognizing and repairing therapeutic alliance ruptures in psychotherapy and psychiatric visits.

Therapeutic alliance rupture and repair with Catherine Eubanks, PhD. We cover Bordin’s goals-tasks-bond model, withdrawal versus confrontation, metacommunication, and real repair skills you can use in brief medication visits, psychotherapy, and supervision today. Upcoming Workshop Alliance Rupture Repair with Dr. J. Christopher Muran & Dr. Catherine Eubanks When: Thursday, November 13 (1:00–4:00 PM EST) Where: Virtual via Zoom Cost: $60 CE | $50 General | Students 50% off (code: STU) CEs: APA for psychologists; NYSED for LCAT, LCSW, and clinical psychologists A 3-hour transtheoretical workshop on recognizing and repairing alliance ruptures. Includes didactics, video analysis, and skills training to improve repair strategies and strengthen therapeutic effectiveness. Register here: eventbrite.com/e/alliance-rupture-repair-3-ces-tickets-17975… Recommended Books & Videos Therapist Performance Under Pressure: Negotiating Emotion, Difference, and Ruptureby Catherine Eubanks & J. Christopher Muran: apa.org/pubs/books/therapist-performance-under-pressure Rupture and Repair in Psychotherapy: A Critical Process for Changeedited by J. Christopher Muran, Catherine Eubanks, & Lisa Wallner Samstag: apa.org/pubs/books/rupture-repair-psychotherapy Video: Rupture and Repair in Psychotherapy: apa.org/pubs/videos/rupture-repair-psychotherapy Alliance-Focused Training: An Evidence-Based Guide to Negotiating Ruptures in Therapyby J. Christopher Muran, Catherine Eubanks, Lisa Wallner Samstag, & James Macdonald: apa.org/pubs/books/alliance-focused-traininga Video: Using Alliance-Focused Training: apa.org/pubs/videos/using-alliance-focused-training ================ 0:00 Introduction, Goals, and Guest Overview 2:04 What Is the Therapeutic Alliance 3:43 Ruptures, Needs, Agency and Communion 6:00 Rethinking Ruptures as Everyday Signals 9:19 Withdrawal Ruptures and Coding Examples 14:01 How to Notice and Metacommunicate 16:37 Co-Constructing Repairs and Therapist Role 20:45 Repaired Ruptures Predict Better Outcomes 23:27 Building Trust and Therapist Self-Regulation 27:10 Boundaries With Lower Personality Functioning 30:00 Role Plays and Supervision That Work 48:02 Here and Now Focus and Corrective Experience Therapeutic Alliance: Rupture and Repair with Catherine Eubanks, PhD. In this episode, we explore how to recognize and repair ruptures in the therapeutic alliance using practical, research-backed tools for psychiatrists, therapists, and trainees. Dr. Eubanks explains the foundation of Bordin’s model—goals, tasks, and bond—and how these elements predict treatment outcomes across psychotherapy and medication management. We talk through subtle withdrawal ruptures like silence, abstraction, and masking emotions, as well as more direct confrontation patterns like criticism and pressure. The conversation dives into metacommunication, or talking about what’s happening i