Consensus and Collaboration in the Working Alliance

In this chapter, the authors address the concepts of consensus and collaboration, which are two related constructs that underlie the working alliance. The authors discuss how to establish consensus and collaboration with patients, as well as how consensus and collaboration evolve from the beginning of treatment to termination. Additionally, they provide clinical examples of how to achieve consensus and collaboration within the working alliance and discuss three interrelated markers of client behavior that signal that there is consensus and collaboration in the therapist–client dyad—collaborative motivation, framework consensus, and collaborative action. The goal of this chapter is to provide therapists with the tools to foster a “confident collaborative relationship.”