The article deals with clinical material obtained in a Group-analytic setting. It focuses on a dyadic relationship between one female patient and the female group conductor The patient either monopolizes the relationship with the therapist, `excluding' the other group members, or withdraws from the group interaction if not specifically addressed by the therapist. The author interprets this behaviour as the result of the patient's upbringing as an only child. An only child herself; the therapist describes the complicated transference and countertransference reactions that occurred within this dyad, hindering the group process as a whole. She describes the resolution of the problem when a male patient takes on the role of `good' father and identifies the roots of her own countertransference reactions by discussing her feelings with a peer group.
