Psychotherapy Process
Explore the dynamics and stages of the psychotherapy process, from the initial client assessment to the therapeutic interventions that promote healing. This section provides insights into the complexities of therapeutic relationships and strategies to enhance treatment effectiveness.
254 articles found
Using Imagination and Literature to Enhance Therapeutic Abilities
Jeremy Holmes (2014) offers here a book, rich with the wisdom of an experienced clinician, that celebrates the imagination as an essential component of the psychotherapeutic process, using examples from literature to provide insight into important aspects of clinical work. He argues that literature and psychodynamic therapy share an “aesthetics” based upon a “paradoxical combination […]
David H. Thurn, Ph.D., LCSW-R
September 28, 2015
That Day in the Empty Play Therapy Room
As the family play therapy session drew to a close, my young patient, Madison*, began to begrudgingly return the dollhouse to its usual orderly state and place the simplistic wooden figures back into their bedrooms with care. I remember smiling and playfully nudging Madison to action while patiently listening to a brief, but passionate, protest […]
Jonathan Jenkins, Psy.D.
September 17, 2015
Critical Considerations in Writing Letters for Trans Clients
Consider the following scenario: a client you have been working with for over a year comes into your office and says “I have something to tell you—I’ve been waiting to let you know for a long time. I am a trans man and I would like your help to transition.” Of course, first reactions from […]
Stephanie L. Budge, Ph.D.
September 13, 2015
Psychotherapists as Gatekeepers
Abstract In order to receive medically necessary gender-affirming treatments, transgender individuals are required to provide evidence of their readiness for gender transitioning. Most often, this evidence includes 1 letter for hormone therapy and 2 letters for surgery. According to the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) Standards of Care (SOC), psychotherapists or other eligible […]
Stephanie L. Budge, Ph.D.
August 30, 2015
Trainee Therapist Characteristics Related to Therapeutic Alliance and Technique
Ample research suggests that therapists differ in their level of effectiveness (Baldwin & Imel, 2013; Blow, Sprenkle, & Davis, 2007; Wampold, 2001). Even more striking is that therapist effects appear to be larger than treatment effects (Kim, Wampold, & Bolt, 2006; Lindgren, Folkesson, & Almiqvist, 2010). Moreover, therapist training, experience, and theoretical orientation do not […]
Jenelle Slavin-Mulford, Ph.D. + 4 more
August 26, 2015
5 Lessons Learned Monitoring Psychotherapy Process and Outcomes
A recent body of psychotherapy research is converging on the benefits of using client process and outcome feedback in clinical practice (Lambert & Shimokawa, 2011). Continual client feedback, also known as “routine outcomes monitoring,” “progress monitoring,” or “practice-based evidence,” refers to the collection of self-report data (e.g., symptoms, well-being, and the therapeutic alliance) from clients […]
Alexandra Savela, M.S.
August 16, 2015
Improving Expertise in Psychotherapy
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Terence J. G. Tracey, Ph.D., ABPP + 3 more
July 8, 2015
Clinicians’ Emotional Responses and Psychodynamic Diagnostic Manual Adult Personality Disorders
Abstract The aim of this study is to explore the relationship between level of personality organization and type of personality disorder as assessed with the categories in the Psychodynamic Diagnostic Manual (PDM; PDM Task Force, 2006) and the emotional responses of treating clinicians. We asked 148 Italian clinicians to assess 1 of their adult patients […]
Francesco Gazzillo + 6 more
June 7, 2015
Attachment Theory and the Psychotherapy Relationship
In 1988 John Bowlby published a groundbreaking collection of his lectures and essays. He inspired a generation of researchers by asserting that the therapist-client relationship has key features in common with parent-child attachments. Roughly coinciding with the 25th anniversary of Bowlby’s book, four meta-analyses have recently been published. These articles and other summaries take stock […]
Brent Mallinckrodt, Ph.D.
May 31, 2015
The Therapy Relationship in Multicultural Psychotherapy
The most consistent and robust predictor of outcome in psychotherapy is the quality of the client-therapist relationship (Lambert, 2013). While we know that therapists’ overall competence and client factors, such as motivation, are relevant and important to treatment, the client-therapist relationship is considered essential to effective treatment, at least in most therapies (Norcross & Lambert, […]
Jairo N. Fuertes, Ph.D., ABPP, LMHC + 3 more
May 12, 2015
Psychodynamic Case Consultation
Watch the Recording Here Psychodynamic Case Consultation with Jon Frederickson, MSW from Internet Editor on Vimeo. Information about the Webinar In the case consultation, we will discuss problem cases where therapists are feeling stuck in the work. We will work together to find out which patient behaviors are blocking therapeutic progress and then suggest strategies […]
Jon Frederickson, M.S.W.
May 4, 2015
What Do We Know about Psychotherapy?
We have just finished writing the 2nd edition of a book with the title The Great Psychotherapy Debate. Although there are many aspects of psychotherapy about which there is no debate, there remain some important debates about some issues. Interestingly, what we debate probably is not all that important, at one level (although it is […]
Bruce E. Wampold, Ph.D., ABPP + 1 more
March 1, 2015