Negative feelings toward the therapist are common at times during treatment, and may even be essential to make certain types of positive changes. In psychodynamic psychotherapy, the client's early conflicts with his or her parents are emphasized and, to some degree, re-experienced with the therapist. For example, an individual with a distant father might interpret the therapist beginning the session a few minutes late one day as a personal rejection. Similarly, a client with an overly critical mother is likely to interpret certain therapist comments as harsh or judgmental. Both of these examples would likely result in the client feeling anger toward the therapist. 

Such client feelings are neither "rude" nor unfair. Rather, as the client begins to feel negatively toward the therapist, he or she can examine the ways in which he or she attempts to avoid, ignore or displace these feelings. Recognizing the underlying patterns that were unknowingly adopted in childhood helps the client to understand them from a more mature perspective and make constructive, conscious changes.