relationship and little likelihood of contact following the research. No other researchers were involved in data collection. The Client was the second person approached to fill the role; the first could not participate due to other commitments. The Client, a female and a social acquaintance of the researcher, was able to select the gender of her therapist. The Therapist, also female, was the second therapist approached directly by the researcher; the first was not available to participate. The Therapist had attended massage school with the researcher and was a fully qualified, registered, and insured remedial massage therapist. The treatment sessions were transcribed using conventions of Conversation Analysis (CA),(13) which requires notation of prosodic features of dialogue, including pitch, volume, pace, and breathing. A list of conventions used in the transcripts is provided in Table 1. The durations of the treatment sessions are provided in Appendix B. The commentaries were transcribed close to verbatim. The transcriptions, along with a listing of the massage techniques administered, were tabulated to allow for easy crossreferencing between components. The results were analyzed by the researcher using conventions of IPA, which typically involves what is called a “double hermeneutic”;(10,11) that is, there are two levels of interpretation: the participants interpret their own behaviour, and the researcher interprets the latent content of what the participants say, giving evidence to support that interpretation. The CA transcripts and commentaries were placed into an Excel spreadsheet for tabulation to allow for easy cross-referencing between what was said in the relationship’ and expectation) lead to better quality of life, whereas the specific factors (form of treatment, tasks and actions) reduce symptoms, but that none of this occurs without a bond based on mutual trust, understanding, and a recognition of the expertise that each person brings to the encounter. Psychotherapy and massage therapy are similar in some aspects of this contextual model of change, giving rise to the possibility that a more deliberate application to MT of psychotherapeutic principles may elucidate the mechanisms behind MT’s mood-changing effects. A search of psychological and medical databases (Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection, PsycINFO, PsycARTICLES, MEDLINE Complete, and ProQuest) yielded only one piece of research specifically addressing the nature of the psychotherapeutic relationship in MT. Moyer’s(9) dissertation suggests that greater reductions in psychological distress, which may include symptoms of depression and anxiety, can be effected by massage therapy in which talk is restricted and the therapeutic bond is strong. The current research sought, therefore, to categorize the elements of this bond. METHODS All data collection was conducted by the researcher, a male with a Diploma of Remedial Massage, who had been working for about three years as a remedial massage therapist. Three massage treatments by one therapist (“the Therapist”) to one recipient (“the Client”) were videotaped at the Therapist’s home studio. Immediately after each treatment session, both the Therapist and the Client viewed the video recording in full and recorded commentaries about their experience. Questionnaires were issued to further guide the participants’ commentaries, but their written responses were not analyzed and no repeat interviews were carried out. A detailed description of the procedures and tools used for data collection are contained in Appendix A. The small sample size (n = 1, as there is one relationship under investigation) is supported by the analytical method used, Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA).(10) Single-subject case studies, while not common, are ideally suited to allow for the depth of analysis required when using IPA because the focus is particular rather than universal.(11) Furthermore, n = 1 studies are increasingly encouraged.(12) Purposive sampling was used; both the Therapist and the Client were recruited by email from the researcher’s personal contacts to allow for selection of reflective participants who were comfortable with the protocol of filmed massages. Both were required to be over 18 years of age. Informed consent was obtained following provision of Plain Language Information Statements regarding the aims and methods of the research. The impact of variables, such as gender and CLARK: PSYCHOTHERAPEUTIC RELATIONSHIP IN MT Table 1. Conventions of Conversation Analysis Symbol Meaning [ Beginning of an overlapping utterance ] End of an overlapping utterance . A stopping fall in tone ↑word↑ A word or phrase uttered in a higher pitch than surrounding words Hhh An audible exhalation .hhh An audible inhalation Heh An utterance in laughter (2.0) A silence of 2 seconds word An emphasised word or phrase (word) An approximation of an inaudible word (X) An inaudible or unintelligible word wo- An unfinished word ‘rd Elision of (a portion of) the start of a word 24 International Journal of Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork—Volume 12, Number 3, September 2019 than either of the other sessions. The Client relates details about family and intimate relationships, and both topics elicit strong reactions from the Therapist. The strong emphasis on frictions in the