TOPIC: Mental Health

Delivering Therapy: What Works

Delivering Therapy: “What Works”

The outcome of therapy depends on many factors, but psychotherapy researchers have evidence to show that certain qualities in a therapist play a key role in increasing the odds of a successful outcome. In her blog, Fulfillment at Any Age, published on August 8, 2011 in Psychology Today, Susan Krauss Whitbourne, PhD wrote about attributes necessary for effective therapists. Dr. Krauss noted psychologist Bruce Wampold condensed hundreds of studies into major qualities of effective mental health professionals at a recent American Psychological Association symposium. In brief, Dr. Krauss listed these qualities as:

1. Possession of a sophisticated set of interpersonal skills. Effective psychotherapists are able to express themselves well. They are astute at sensing what other people are thinking and feeling. In relating to their clients, they show warmth and acceptance, empathy, and a focus on others, not themselves.

2. Ability to help you feel you can trust the therapist. According to Wampold, people determine whether or not they can trust someone within 50 milliseconds of meeting them. Clients of effective therapists believe that their therapists will be helpful because the therapist communicates both verbally and non-verbally that he or she is someone the client can trust.

3. Willingness to establish an alliance with you. One of the solidest predictors of good therapeutic outcome is the feeling that clients are in a partnership with their therapists. This is known as the therapeutic alliance. Effective therapists are able to form these alliances with many types of patients.

4. Ability to provides an explanation of your symptoms and can adapt this explanation as circumstances change. Clients want to know why they're experiencing their symptoms even if this isn't the first time they've sought therapy. Effective therapists provide explanations that clients can understand but they are also willing to shift according to the way in which treatment unfolds.

5. Commitment to developing a consistent and acceptable treatment plan. Effective therapists conduct an assessment very early in treatment. Following that assessment, they should develop a treatment plan and share that treatment plan with you.

6. Communication of confidence about the course of therapy. An effective therapist keeps clients in therapy by communicating to clients the feeling that therapy will be worthwhile. These therapists allow their clients to feel secure in the knowledge that the therapists know what they're doing and why.

7. Attention to the progress of therapy and communication of this interest to the client. Good therapists are interested in finding out how their clients are responding to treatment. They show that they want their clients to improve.

8. Flexibility in adapting treatment to the particular client's characteristics. A good therapist doesn't follow a rigid schedule of treatment- a "one size fits all" approach (as stated by Scranton University psychotherapy researcher John Norcross). Research into psychotherapy showed convincingly in large numbers of studies that some treatments are better than others for particular psychological disorders. However, a therapist needs to be willing to make accommodations for the client's particular characteristics.

9. Inspiration of hope and optimism about your chances of improvement. Hope is a terrific motivator. Feeling that something is going to work is often a large part of the equation in successful treatment. However, a good therapist isn't unrealistically hopeful. Effective therapists know how to strike a balance between realism and hope.

10. Sensitivity toward your cultural background. The principles of Evidence Based Practice approved by the American Psychological Association recommend that therapists adapt treatment to their client's cultural values. This includes showing respect for your background and being aware of attitudes within your culture or community toward, for example, family relationships, religious practices, and appropriate behavior.

11. Possession of self-insight. An effective therapist is self-aware and is able to separate his or her own issues from those of clients. Freud coined the term "counter-transference" to refer to cases in which the issues expressed by a client lead to emotional reactions on the part of the therapist. It's important for therapists to be able to identify and manage their responses to the issues their clients present to them.

12. Reliance on the best research evidence. Therapists acting in accordance with APA's Evidence Based Practice Guidelines stay abreast of the latest developments in clinical psychology, particularly in their areas of expertise. Ideally, therapists alter their treatment approaches to be consistent with the latest knowledge.

13. Involvement in continued training and education. Licensed mental health professionals must participate in continuing education to maintain their credentials. They are required by law to seek and complete this training.

Clinicians reading the Second Edition of The Heart & Soul of Change: Delivering What Works in Therapy, by Barry L. Duncan, PsyD, Scott D. Miller, PhD, Bruce E. Wampold, PhD, ABPP and Mark A. Hubble, PhD will improve their understanding of what is truly therapeutic in the diverse forms of psychotherapy practiced today. This book analyzes the most recent research on what works in therapeutic practice and provide practical guidance on how a therapist can accurately “deliver what works in therapy.” This edition has the same pragmatic focus as the first edition but with a larger breadth of coverage and new chapters on both youth psychotherapy and substance abuse treatment. The guiding principle is recognition that psychotherapy is implemented one person at a time, on the basis of that unique individual’s perception of the progress and fit on the therapy and therapist.

The text examines the common factors underlying effective psychotherapy and bring the psychotherapist and the client-therapist relationship into focus as key determinants of psychotherapy out come. This new edition also demonstrates that systematic client feedback improves effectiveness and efficiency and legitimizes psychotherapy services to third-party payers.

Related Courses:

Topic Archive: Mental Health

Professor Gerald Landsberg says the shooting in Tucson, Arizona, demonstrates again that mental health systems in the US are seriously flawed.

Disclaimer

The information contained on GenesisCE.org is for informational and educational purposes only. The data and information on GenesisCE.org is not intended to be a substitute for professional assistance. This website may link to other websites, which are not under the control of GenesisCE.org. We have no control over the content of those sites. The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply an endorsement of the views expressed within them. Though we make every effort to keep the information up-to-date and correct, we make no representations regarding the accuracy contained on the website. Any reliance on such information is at your own risk.

GenesisCE.org will not be liable for any loss or damage arising out of the use of this website. You may direct questions, comments or reports of incidents to: contactus@genesisce.org Revisions to this website disclaimer may occur without notice. Your use of this site implies your acceptance of the terms this Disclaimer or any modifications.