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Wednesday, May 6, 2026, 7:30 PM - 9:00 PM EST
Virtual: Zoom (the link will be
Genuineness, the capacity to accurately and sincerely represent one’s unfolding experience with another, was famously popularized by Carl Rogers (1957) as one of the three necessary and sufficient conditions of therapeutic change. In fact, Rogers went so far as to argue that genuineness was the most important. Sixty years later, and considerable research has amassed in the psychotherapy literature that attests to the role of relational depth, the bond subscale of the working alliance, and the real relationship. What is perhaps less recognized are the contributions put forward by depth-oriented psychotherapies to advance this evidence base. From existential-humanistic psychology to the relational turn in psychoanalytic psychology, “I-Thou” encounters continue to surface as paramount to therapeutic change. In this presentation, I will present these contributions and extend them to a model of Critical-Liberation Psychotherapy (Morrill, 2021; Morrill & Comas-Diaz, 2025), articulating the liberatory possibilities embedded in moments of real meeting.
Learning Objectives:
At the conclusion of this program, participants will be able to:
1. Define and recognize genuineness and the real relationship as unique psychotherapy constructs.
2. Evaluate three implications of this evidence base for clinical application in depth psychologies.
3. Assess and develop an argument around whether cultivating genuine encounters in asymmetrical relationships and liberatory potential within institutional psychotherapy relationships are possible and if so, in what conditions.
RIAPP is committed to ensuring that cost is never a barrier to psychodynamic and psychoanalytic learning and knows that removing this barrier is imperative to bringing in new voices and perspectives, and collective growth. As such, RIAPP offers a $0 option for membership and events. If you choose to use the $0 option, please enter the discount code FREE at checkout.
RIAPP Members receive discounted rates. To become a member, go to the “Join” tab at the top of this page.
Wednesday, May 6, 2026, 7:30 PM - 9:00 PM EST
Virtual: Zoom (the link will be
Genuineness, the capacity to accurately and sincerely represent one’s unfolding experience with another, was famously popularized by Carl Rogers (1957) as one of the three necessary and sufficient conditions of therapeutic change. In fact, Rogers went so far as to argue that genuineness was the most important. Sixty years later, and considerable research has amassed in the psychotherapy literature that attests to the role of relational depth, the bond subscale of the working alliance, and the real relationship. What is perhaps less recognized are the contributions put forward by depth-oriented psychotherapies to advance this evidence base. From existential-humanistic psychology to the relational turn in psychoanalytic psychology, “I-Thou” encounters continue to surface as paramount to therapeutic change. In this presentation, I will present these contributions and extend them to a model of Critical-Liberation Psychotherapy (Morrill, 2021; Morrill & Comas-Diaz, 2025), articulating the liberatory possibilities embedded in moments of real meeting.
Learning Objectives:
At the conclusion of this program, participants will be able to:
1. Define and recognize genuineness and the real relationship as unique psychotherapy constructs.
2. Evaluate three implications of this evidence base for clinical application in depth psychologies.
3. Assess and develop an argument around whether cultivating genuine encounters in asymmetrical relationships and liberatory potential within institutional psychotherapy relationships are possible and if so, in what conditions.
RIAPP is committed to ensuring that cost is never a barrier to psychodynamic and psychoanalytic learning and knows that removing this barrier is imperative to bringing in new voices and perspectives, and collective growth. As such, RIAPP offers a $0 option for membership and events. If you choose to use the $0 option, please enter the discount code FREE at checkout.
RIAPP Members receive discounted rates. To become a member, go to the “Join” tab at the top of this page.