Creating Safe, Evocative, Attuned, and Mutually Vulnerable Therapeutic Beginnings: Strategies From Functional Analytic Psychotherapy

Abstract

Functional analytic psychotherapy (FAP), with its emphasis on the creation of a safe, evocative, attuned, authentic, and mutually vulnerable therapeutic relationship, offers strategies that are especially relevant for therapeutic beginnings that yield an engaging and potent treatment. The 5 rules of FAP provide behavioral specificity in the early tasks of therapy that can build a powerful alliance with clients: creating trust and safety, moving the conversation from content to in-the-moment process, evoking and naturally reinforcing client target behaviors related to authentic expression, instilling hope, being aware of clinical impact, and promoting generalization of in-session gains to daily life. It is hoped that FAP offers a conceptually clear and inspiring transtheoretical framework that sets the stage for a deeply meaningful and unforgettable therapy.