Do you trust us right now? This question matters, because by opening this article, you have begun a kind of relationship with us. It’s a strange and asynchronous relationship, to be sure; while the first author is writing from her laptop on a gloriously sunny day in Lake Macquarie, Australia, the other authors are contributing […]
Abstract Therapists often struggle to determine the most important things to focus on during termination. Reviewing the treatment, identifying plans for the future, summarizing positive gains, and saying goodbye receive the most attention. Despite our best intentions, termination can end up becoming intellectualized. Attachment theory and recent developments in neuroscience offer us a road map […]
Have you ever seen anyone else doing supervision—except your own? Whenever I am giving a workshop on clinical supervision to psychotherapy supervisors, I ask if any of them have every seen another psychologist supervising a trainee, let along watched a master supervisor doing so. On every occasion, only a few hands go up. Although clinical […]
Currently, there is a paradigm clash between different visions of the nature of psychotherapy. The clash is not merely about what psychotherapy is, how it helps, and how it should be practiced. It is also about the nature of scientific evidence and what the evidence shows about effective practice. In the forward to this book […]
It has long been assumed that asking a supervisee to explore her conscious and unconscious feelings toward a client will help her work with that client, understand herself better, and ultimately facilitate her professional development (e.g., Ekstein & Wallerstein, 1972; Kagan, 1984). Underlying this assumption is an appreciation for the therapist as the instrument of […]
Close relationships are central to mental health (Wetterneck & Hart, 2012). Loneliness and poor social connection represent a significant public health concern, increasing risk of death as much as excessive cigarette smoking, more than excessive drinking and obesity (Holt-Lunstad et. al., 2010). Functional Analytic Psychotherapy (FAP) is a contextual, behavioral, relational approach to psychotherapy in […]
Abstract This article, part of a special section on the Relational Foundations of Psychotherapy, describes a particular relational approach called cyclical psychodynamics. Cyclical psychodynamics is rooted both in the relational perspective in psychoanalysis and in an integrative melding of psychodynamic, cognitive–behavioral, systemic, and experiential points of view. Central to its theoretical structure is a focus […]
Abstract One of the most critical goals for couple psychotherapy is to foster a new relational experience in the session where the couple feels safe enough to reveal more vulnerable emotions and to explore their defensive withdrawal, aggressive attacking, or blaming. The lived intimate experience in the session offers the couple an opportunity to gain […]