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 […]
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 […]
In Laska, Gurman, & Wampold (2014) and Laska & Wampold (2014) I discussed how to improve the quality of mental health care from a common factor (CF) perspective. Unfortunately, one fundamental misunderstanding of CF theory is that “anything goes” and therapists can do whatever they want. Let me be crystal clear, from a CF perspective, […]
Introduction In the June issue of Psychotherapy, Newman, Przeworski, Consoli, and Taylor present a study on the use of a palmtop computer-assisted therapy for Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) (Newman et al., 2014). This novel evaluation of the efficiency of coupling a computer program with face-to-face Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) was the culmination of questions that began […]
Competency Initiatives in Professional Psychology Evidence-Based Therapy Relationships Mobile Applications for use by clients as well as providers A free web-based system to help clinicians evaluate and monitor the course of treatment A library of scales appropriate of use in clinical and research applications An Excel file file available for […]
Abstract Patients’ expectations about the efficacy and nature of psychotherapy have long been considered important common treatment factors, and the empirical literature has largely supported this perspective. In this practice-oriented review, we examine the research on the association between patients’ psycho- therapy expectations and both adaptive treatment processes and outcomes. We also examine the research […]
Report Division 29 (The Society for the Advancement of Psychotherapy) President, Jeffrey J. Magnavita, initiated a task force to complete the following tasks and answer the following questions in 2010, reporting back to the Division 29 Board of Directors at its October, 2010 meeting. Jeffrey Barnett, past president of the division agreed to lead the […]
A classic social psychological finding is that expectations shape people’s experiences, perceptions, and behaviors (e.g., Asch, 1946). Clinical psychologists have long been interested in how expectations specifically affect psychotherapy (e.g., Frank, 1968). After decades of theoretical and empirical attention, it appears safe to say that patient expectations are an important ingredient of psychotherapeutic change (e.g., Kirsch, […]
Garrison Keillor observes of the residents of Lake Wobegon, "All the women are strong, all the men are good-looking, and all the children are above average." As psychotherapists, it is likely that we similarly believe we are above average, but as Keillor’s folksy humor reminds us, it ain’t so—half of us are below average, as […]