Clinical practice and scientific psychology: Can this marriage be saved?

Discusses the relationship of scientific psychology to the practice of psychotherapy. The use of research to change psychotherapy techniques is examined in each of 3 major orientations of psychodynamic, experiential, and behavioral psychotherapy. Common factors that may be responsible for the success of all therapies are described, and the controversy between those who see psychotherapy as a cultural ritual and those who see it as a scientifically-based procedure is reviewed. The consequences of a split between researcher and clinician roles in clinical psychology are predicted. It is concluded that scientific psychology and psychotherapy can together contribute meaningfully to society and a divorce would not be in the best interest of either discipline. (41 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychognosis and psychopedics.

Comments on how psychology is badly in need of a new and more precise term to describe the intimate interpersonal activity between psychologist and emotional upset client. The author states that psychiatrists generally and many clinical psychologists prefer the term "psychotherapy" for the activity involved, possibly because of the association of the term "therapy" with medical treatment; though etymologically the term "psychotherapy," meaning "service of the soul," might be most appropriately preempted by pastoral psychology. According to the author, the contention recently advanced by a committee of the AMA that, since "therapy" is a medical function, psychotherapy can be legitimately performed only by licensed physicians, stretches a tenuous metaphor to the breaking point and seems to demonstrate the prepotency of economic considerations over both logic and social responsibility. Lastly, the author states that the use of terms like psychognosis and psychopedics for diagnosis and psychotherapy, though awkward at first, would further both conceptual clarity and the delineation of the psychologist's (and the delimitation of the physician's) professional responsibility. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Understanding psychiatrists.

The relations between psychologists and psychiatrists especially in psychotherapy is discussed in the light of two premises (1) the medical responsibility of the psychiatrist, and (2) the inseparability of somatic and psychic illnesses. However, many problems fall into educational or social categories rather than illness. "… any attempt by psychologists to take over the diagnosis and treatment of… functional psychiatric disorders generally is bound to be regarded by the psychiatric speciality as a basic challenge to its function… and will surely lead to a major professional struggle between psychology and the whole of medicine." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Attitudes of psychiatrists toward elderly patients

A group of 179 psychiatrists responded to a questionnaire requesting their opinions concerning four clinical vignettes. Analysis of their responses indicated that these psychiatrists, at a highly statistically significant level, regarded older patients as less ideal for their practices than younger patients with identical symptoms. The respondents viewed the older patients as having a poorer prognosis, and their treatment plans for them were less likely to emphasize psychotherapy. In general, there was a negative correlation between the age of the respondent psychiatrists and their estimate of the "idealness" of and favorable prognosis for older patients.     

The effectiveness of psychotherapy: The Consumer Reports study.

Consumer Reports (1995, November) published an article which concluded that patients benefitted very substantially from psychotherapy, that long-term treatment did considerably better than short-term treatment, and that psychotherapy alone did not differ in effectiveness from medication plus psychotherapy. Furthermore, no specific modality of psychotherapy did better than any other for any disorder; psychologists, psychiatrists, and social workers did not differ in their effectiveness as treaters; and all did better than marriage counselors and long-term family doctoring. Patients whose length of therapy or choice of therapist was limited by insurance or managed care did worse. The methodological virtues and drawbacks of this large-scale survey are examined and contrasted with the more traditional efficacy study, in which patients are randomized into a manualized, fixed duration treatment or into control groups. I conclude that the Consumer Reports survey complements the efficacy method, and that the best features of these two methods can be combined into a more ideal method that will best provide empirical validation of psychotherapy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

APA and (AP)–2.

Psychology developed 100 yrs ago as a laboratory "science," and there was no real interest in application until World War I. After World War I, psychology became more applied, but after World War II it exploded as clinical psychology. Clinical psychologists sought a professional society in the state psychological associations and eventually gained the support of the American Psychological Association (APA). The author emphasizes that, although basic and applied training procedures parallel the medical model, clinical psychologists are not junior psychiatrists and that they make a unique contribution because of their training in research and statistics. The author further states that their contributions should be supported by all psychologists for the benefit of everyone, including academic psychologists. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The effect of therapists' training on group therapeutic outcome.

The outcome of group therapy for psychotic patients was used as the dependent variable in assessing the comparative efficacy of trained and untrained therapists. The latter were undergraduate students with no training or experience in psychotherapy. For this reason, their role in psychotherapy was viewed as analogous to that of a placebo in studies assessing drug effects. Changes in psychological test performance of 295 patients before and after 5 mo. of group therapy served as the criterion of therapeutic behavior change. By comparison to an untreated control group the lay therapists achieved slightly better results than psychiatrists and psychiatric social workers doing group therapy with similar patients. Caution is urged in extending the implications of these results beyond group therapy with schizophrenic patients. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Professional research commitment: A symptom or a syndrome.

A survey of 16,000 psychologists and psychiatrists invited to participate in a large scale investigation of psychotherapy revealed that less than 1% of those contacted wished to participate. Additional data were collected to help isolate the reasons for such limited participation. Comparisons between those who agreed and those who declined participation revealed that the type of practice, orientation of the practitioner, age, and weekly hr. of therapy were not significant variables for differentiating participators from nonparticipators. The reason most frequently given by those who refused participation was lack of time. Data are discussed in the context of the research status of professional psychology and implications for research and clinical practice. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Suicide among psychotherapists: Review and discussion.

Comments on an article by C. Turkington (1984) that chronicles the psychology profession's attempts to provide assistance to psychologists suffering emotional distress. A review of the literature reveals the critical need for further research concerning the incidence and cause of suicide among psychotherapists (including psychiatrists). It is concluded that studies examining the rate of suicide among those who actually practice psychotherapy are needed to determine whether there is cause for alarm. (13 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Symposium on relationships between religion and mental health: Introductory remarks.

"We are witnessing a conspicuous change in the climate between religion and science in recent years." In psychology this has been evidenced in seminars on religion and psychiatry, work shops on pastoral care and psychotherapy, grants to universities for developing mental health curricula for theological students, creation of an Academy of Religion and Mental Health, and the establishing of an APA committee to study relationships between religion and mental health. "The hitherto existing chasm between religion and psychology is somewhat unusual because… both concern themselves with human nature and behavior." This symposium spotlights: expanding links between psychology and religion, religious experience and psychological conflict, the nature of religious controls, and moral issues in psychotherapy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Humanistic–existential psychotherapy competencies and the supervisory process.

There has been an increasing focus in recent years on articulating foundational and functional competencies for practice in professional psychology and how a competency-based approach might inform psychology training. With the aim of contributing to the dialogue in this area, the discussion herein explores psychotherapy competencies through the lens of a humanistic–existential perspective and describes implications for psychotherapy training and supervision. Specifically, competencies pertaining to facilitating the client’s experiential awareness and use of the psychotherapy relationship to engender client change are described. Next, the foundational and functional competencies within professional psychology that are particularly salient to a humanistic–existential psychotherapy framework are discussed. Finally, the ways in which a humanistic–existential supervision framework contributes to the development of psychotherapy competencies in trainees is considered. A brief vignette is presented to illustrate the supervision process. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Transferring psychotherapy clients: State of the art.

Transferring psychotherapy clients from one therapist to another is a common event that may pose clinical and administrative problems. Clinicians and therapists in training transfer clients when their professional role or activities change or when they leave their clinical settings. We review the literature on transferring psychotherapy clients and report on aspects of the transfer process and procedures used by a national sample of psychology training clinics. We also report and discuss the results of an exploratory analysis training clinic records in which we investigated the relation between transfer outcome (successful vs. unsuccessful) and a set of treatment and demographic factors. Last, we suggest several ways of handling difficulties that arise as a result of clinical and administrative reassignment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Mental health values of professional therapists: A national interdisciplinary survey.

We conducted a national survey of clinical psychologists, marriage and family therapists, social workers, and psychiatrists to assess values pertinent to mental health and psychotherapy. The survey revealed considerable agreement among mental health professionals about this specific values domain. There was a strong relationship between their views of a value's importance for a positive, mentally healthy life-style and its usefulness in guiding psychotherapy. Differences in the characteristics of therapists were correlated with differences in their values. We also found factors related to value differences between professional groups. Implications for therapeutic philosophy and practice are considered, and the need for explicitness concerning values is emphasized. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

L’importance de la famille: Psychologie de la famille et famille de la psychologie.

Research on the family lies at the interface between basic and applied science. After tracing the scientific and practise roots of research on the family, I highlight that research to date has neglected the perspective of fathers. I propose that as in regular families, the family of Canadian psychology is diverse and constantly evolving. Key findings in psychology of the family include the importance of multiple perspectives, the benefits of quality time, and the toxic effects of conflict. These concepts apply equally to the family of Canadian psychology. I suggest that through involvement in the Canadian Psychological Association, psychologists can be enriched by multiple perspectives, can benefit from communication with one another to work together to advance psychology for all. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Clinical psychology training in Canada: Its development, current status, and the prospects for accreditation": Comment on Conway.

Comments on the original article, Clinical psychology training in Canada: Its development, current status, and the prospects for accreditation by John B. Conway (see record 1985-10567-001). I found that Dr. Conway provided me with a good service when he so clearly presented the case for the accreditation of Canadian clinical psychology training programmes. I am sure that many other readers join me in thanking him. My first inclination was to reject his arguments, and to regard the fact that Canadian psychology departments were giving up their academic independence to a trade association as being a prime example of Fromm's escape from freedom. But Dr. Conway's arguments were well founded, and obviously they represent the view of the majority of my colleagues. I had to ask myself a number of questions and, being biased, it was difficult for me to try to be fair in my answers. I have done this and my comments on Dr. Conway's paper will, I hope, reflect a "yes and" rather than a "yes but" approach. If this be so, then it may be a useful exercise, since it bridges a significant difference in basic attitudes within the compass of clinical psychology and I am gratified that, in a real sense, Dr. Conway is coauthor of what I wish to write in this review. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Families matter: Psychology of the family and the family of psychology.

Research on the family lies at the interface between basic and applied science. After tracing the scientific and practise roots of research on the family, I highlight that research to date has neglected the perspective of fathers. I propose that as in regular families, the family of Canadian psychology is diverse and constantly evolving. Key findings in psychology of the family include the importance of multiple perspectives, the benefits of quality time, and the toxic effects of conflict. These concepts apply equally to the family of Canadian psychology. I suggest that through involvement in the Canadian Psychological Association, psychologists can be enriched by multiple perspectives, can benefit from communication with one another to work together to advance psychology for all. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The changing nature of hope: Development, psychotherapy, and life-threatening illness.

During the course of our work we are sometimes invited to accompany patients on journeys that affect us very deeply. It may be because they invite us to help them develop, or because they persevere in the face of extreme suffering, or because they share extreme joys and accomplishments, or because they share profound disappointment, or because they show us the power of the human spirit and the changing nature of hope. This paper describes a psychotherapy case that touched me for all these reasons. It outlines the poignant ups and downs in the journey of a young woman facing life-threatening illness. It describes the interruption and resumption of her development during emerging adulthood. It relies upon theory and research in human development, family systems, and pediatric/health psychology, and the scholarship concerning grief. The paper discusses countertransference and ethical issues as they arose during psychotherapy. I conclude with reflections on the most significant lessons I learned that have impacted my work and life going forward. Many of the issues discussed pertain not only to working with the special population facing life-threatening illness, but to working with anyone facing uncertainty, disappointment, helplessness, or loss. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Social psychology in an era of social change": Comment.

Comments on "Social psychology in an era of social change" by K.E. Weick (American Psychologist, 1969, Vol. 24, 990-998). If I interpret Weick correctly, his understanding of the relevance of social psychology to the present era of social change will necessarily be fragmentary. To me the fragment he supplies is enlightening but represents "science as usual" in the face of the uniquely menacing quality of current social change. Domestic and international crises will multiply at an exponential rate if our attitude remains "science as usual." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cultivating the field of psychology: Psychological journals at the turn of the century and beyond.

Prominent psychologists, including G. Stanley Hall, James Mark Baldwin, and James McKeen Cattell, cultivated the field of psychological publishing with privately owned and managed journals. Hall's journals, including the American Journal of Psychology and Pedagogical Seminary, reflected his view of psychology as the empirical study of human nature and his support for applied psychology. Baldwin and Cattell's periodicals, including Psychological Review and Psychological Monographs, reflected a narrower scientific and academic view of psychology. Baldwin and Cattell were more successful editors than Hall and strategically linked their journals to the American Psychological Association (APA). The Psychological Review journals were purchased by APA in 1925. The narrower vision represented in these journals may have contributed to applied psychologists' dissatisfaction with APA during the late 1920s and early 1930s. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)