Within, outside, and in between - The relational unconscious

This article explored the idea of a relational unconscious, which presumes three interconnected ideas about human interaction. First, meaning and unde rstanding are coconstructed and intersubjective and not universal, absolute , and preformed. Second, there is a fluid boundary between conscious and un conscious experience that is intersubjectively mediated. Third, language is basic to human experience, whether or not a particular experience can be v erbally expressed. This view of unconscious experience suggests that a ther apist's participation is a major determining influence on the generation aw areness, and expression of a patient's unconscious experience. In applying a relational view of unconscious processes, self-disclosure is used to cons ider the usefulness of therapeutic interventions, to think critically about the nature of human interaction, and to specify how the therapeutic relati onship promotes healing and growth.