The Omniscience Psychologist As a psychologist, I typically get one of two responses when I meet someone new and they inquire about my profession. The first is a quick clamor response, as if by speaking I can plunge deeply into their psyche and see parts of themselves they prefer to stay hidden. The second response […]
While an impressive amount of knowledge has been gathered so far from psychotherapy process and outcome research (see Lambert, 2013), there are still many unanswered questions and areas of needed additional attention. Some of these remaining questions focus on clarifying currently unanswered debates in the field; others represent ways to improve current outcomes; and some […]
Abstract As the conceptualization of evidence-based practice expands beyond the phasic application of treatment manuals for specific mental health diagnoses, greater attention is being paid to treatment personalization, including at its very first steps. One approach to such early personalization involves therapist flexible responsivity to patients’ presenting nondiagnostic characteristics, such as their treatment-related beliefs, that […]
Abstract The use of outcome monitoring systems to identify clients that are at-risk for treatment failure has now become part of daily clinical practice, shown in 25 empirical studies to improve client outcomes. These promising findings have led to outcome monitoring systems being recognized as evidence-based. Feedback systems based on client perception of therapeutic processes […]
Life, and the mind, are puzzles. “Trying to understand life” goes way back. The Chinese Taoists said life is a flow, a way, and the best life is one that follows the way. A little obscure, but somehow plausible. The Confucians basically said to be a good person, follow the rules, and do the right […]
My Confusion About and Interest in Therapist Self-Disclosure (TSD) As I begin to establish my private practice, I have been reflecting on the evolution of my thoughts about and use of therapist self-disclosure (TSD), which I am using here to mean “therapist statements that reveal something personal about the therapist” (Hill & Knox, 2002, p. […]
Psychotherapy termination is that moment in which therapists and clients say goodbye (or “call me if you need me”). As part of the first author’s doctoral dissertation, we conducted a research study in which we asked former clients about their treatment. Surprisingly, when clients were asked about their treatment, many started the recount by addressing […]
Abstract In the middle of the 20th century, Hans Eysenck reviewed studies of psychotherapy, which consisted primarily of psychoanalytic, psychodynamic, and eclectic treatments, and concluded that psychotherapy (as opposed to behavior therapy) was not effective and was possibly harmful. In the inaugural article in Psychotherapy, Hans Strupp challenged Eysenck’s conclusions and discussed how psychotherapy research should […]