In response to the charge by "collaborative" therapies, such as solution focused and narrative, that structural family therapy is an aggressive, confrontational, and impositional approach, this investigation examines the role of therapist empathy in creating a collaborative partnership in structural family therapy. Twenty-four videotaped therapy sessions were used to correlate therapists' empathic response to family members and in-session change in the family's core problem dynamic. Findings suggest that empathy is not only evident in structural family therapy, but may be an essential ingredient in establishing a collaborative relationship and facilitating within-session change. (Contains 5 tables.)