Psychotherapy Bulletin
Browse articles, research, and updates from the Society for the Advancement of Psychotherapy.
1080 articles found
Framing Treatment Goals with Clients
One of the primary goals of most forms of psychotherapy is to reduce the suffering or distress that clients experience. However, various orientations often differ in how they frame that goal – some focusing more on symptom reduction, others on insight, and still others on personal growth. Clients may also differ in the way that […]
Jake Park, Ph.D.
March 5, 2017
Closing the Gap Between Psychotherapy Research and Practice
Psychology researchers have long lamented that practicing therapists do not make use of research findings in their clinical work. For their part, clinicians have argued that much of what researchers have studied has not adequately addressed the issues that they confront in their practices. This gap between research and practice continues to exist, even in […]
Marvin R. Goldfried, Ph.D., ABPP + 6 more
March 2, 2017
Explaining Therapeutic Change in Residential Wilderness Therapy Groups
Residential wilderness therapy or adventure therapy is “the prescriptive use of adventure experiences provided by mental health professionals, often conducted in natural settings that kinesthetically engage clients on cognitive, affective, and behavioral levels.” (Gass, Gillis & Russell, 2012 p.1). The term adventure therapy is used in the literature interchangeably with “wilderness therapy” (Russell, 2001) and […]
Harold L. (Lee) Gillis, Ph.D. + 1 more
February 26, 2017
Noticing Therapeutic Novelty
Many children participate in the classic science project of nurturing a seedling in a Dixie cup and observing the ensuing course of germination. The child’s primary job is to exercise patience with the process, punctuated by subtle manipulation of the seedling’s environment to ensure ideal growth conditions. Hopefully, in time, the seedling pokes out of […]
Melissa A. Smigelsky, M.A., M.S.
February 19, 2017
A Deeper Look at Language in the Therapy Room
The authors discuss the role of language for bilingual clients in treatment. They state that in therapy language is the primary means of transmitting information about beliefs and cultural traditions, articulating emotions, and can also be a source of identity. However, despite an increase in culturally competent treatments in recent years, the role of language […]
Daria Diakonova-Curtis, Ph.D.
February 12, 2017
Increasing LGBTQ Receptivity of Treatment
This article discusses findings of a qualitative study with 13 self-identified LGBTQ individuals who had a previous experience with psychotherapy. Utilizing consensual qualitative research (CQR) methods to analyze narratives from the participants, some important themes emerged which provide insights for clinicians to offer treatment that is sensitive to the needs of this population. The participants […]
Wei-Chun “Vivi” Hua, Psy.D.
February 5, 2017
So Much Is Happening in the Society for the Advancement of Psychotherapy
Wow! As I start this year as your President, I am awed by all we are doing. We just had our winter Board of Directors meeting. What a great meeting, with a great group of people. We are an increasingly diverse group in so many different respects. Yet, when we sit down to work, we […]
Jeffrey Zimmerman, Ph.D., ABPP
February 1, 2017
Is Psychotherapy Integration Always Beneficial?
Evidence-based practice in psychology has been defined as the integration of the best available research, clinical expertise, and the individual client’s characteristics, values, and preferences (APA, 2006). This definition suggests that psychotherapists should be able, and willing, to integrate techniques from different theoretical orientations based on the context. Although integration is important, it is also […]
Joshua K. Swift, Ph.D.
January 29, 2017
Meditation and the Mindfulness Trend in Psychotherapy
Adding to the neurological research findings on the benefits of meditation, a recent study found that long-term meditators who are age 50 and older have a younger brain age than non-meditators (Luders, Cherbuin, & Gaser, 2016). Using a validated approach based on high-dimensional pattern recognition, brains of meditators were found to be 7.5 years younger […]
Steven J. Hendlin, Ph.D.
January 27, 2017
Cross-Training Your Therapeutic Ear Through Hip Hop
Clinical Notes with Dr. J …Initially rap was America’s informal CNN because when Rap records came out somebody from far away could listen to a Rap record because it uses so many descriptive words and get a visual picture from what was being said…Rap is now a worldwide phenomenon. Rap is the CNN for young […]
Jonathan Jenkins, Psy.D.
January 25, 2017
Patient Selection in Group Psychotherapy
The importance of group composition – the particular blend of patient characteristics in a therapy group – is widely recognized by group psychotherapists. Skilled clinicians try to have an ideal composition in mind when selecting patients for group therapy. Notwithstanding such ideals, the task of selecting group members is complicated by the fact that no […]
Joanna Cheek, M.D., FRCPC + 2 more
January 15, 2017
The Case for Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy for Diverse Populations
Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) is a form of CBT that has been adapted to reduce maladaptive behaviors while changing individuals’ beliefs and perceptions about his or her own depressive thoughts (as cited in Bell, 2015). MBCT may be a useful intervention for diverse populations. Consequently, Bell investigated the effects of mindfulness meditation on anxiety, depression, […]
Tameisha S. Hinton
January 10, 2017