Carl Rogers, "counseling," and the Minnesota point of view.

With reference to D. Super's (1989) discussion of C. Rogers's (1942) use of the word "counseling" in the title of his 1st psychotherapy book, the decision to use this term was based on a desire to evoke greater interest in nondirective counseling/psychotherapy among counselors who might otherwise avoid a treatise on psychotherapy because of its specialized medical connotation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Intensive group psychotherapy.

Reviews the book, Intensive group psychotherapy by George R. Bach (1954). According to the reviewer, as a new addition to the rapidly increasing body of literature on group psychotherapy, this volume contains a number of unique features that will certainly command the attention of clinical and social psychologists. It is first of all a concrete and highly practical presentation of group psychotherapy as practiced privately with neurotic patients. The reviewer states that in this respect, it should fill a growing need for work dealing with private group treatment, a field that seems to have some interesting social implications. In addition to this more practical feature, this book is unusual because it is one of the first in this area which includes an attempt to apply the technical developments in group dynamics evolved by the social psychologists directly to the therapeutic treatment of character disorders, hysterics, and other neurotic patients frequently encountered in private practice. The reviewer states that the greatest direct appeal of this book will certainly be the clearly written first half which deals with practical problems of group therapy. The second half of the book opens with an extensive and interesting discussion of a theory of "contact psychology" and group life. In this reviewer's opinion, this book will be of interest both to group therapists and to students seeking material that bridges the gap between clinical and social psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing: Basic principles, protocols, and procedures.

Reviews the book, Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing: Bask principles, protocols, and procedures by Francine Shapiro (1995). This text is a carefully crafted, almost 400 page book on the theory, mechanisms and workings of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR). Francine Shapiro espouses much of what is important in psychotherapy and puts aside much of what has been controversial as she describes EMDR. Simply put, this work is the best representation of the procedure to date. For the clinician who uses this procedure, this book is a must. It outlines its necessary ingredients, standard problems, newer uses, typical mistakes, and changes (over its six year oddessy). Several strengths are noteworthy, including EMDR's painstaking assessment of the client, client safety factors, client preparation, as well as the importance of identifying the moving goalpost of "best" targets, needed cognitions, emotions, and sensations. Importantly too, the focus of EMDR is targets and not disorders. Implied but important to underscore, EMDR applies an essential rubric of psychotherapy, the nondirective unfolding of the client according to a least restrictive principle of intervention (by the therapist). EMDR seems to have this down well. If movement is present, the therapist remains truly nondirective, and uses simple rules; if not, a more active "therapeutic intervention" is called for. A procedure that can perform these tasks and do this in a user-friendly manner is not easy to find. This book highlights this unfolding dynamic. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Group psychotherapy: Studies in methodology of research and therapy. Report of a group psychotherapy research project of the U. S. Veterans Administration.

Reviews the book, Group Psychotherapy: Studies in Methodology of Research and Therapy. Report of a group psychotherapy research project of the U. S. Veterans Administration by Jerome D. Frank and Florence B. Powdermaker (see record 1954-02756-000). According to the reviewer, the project described in this volume was probably the first large-scale formal research into the process of group psychotherapy. The two major objectives of the investigation were to develop methods for studying the process of therapy and the specific problems faced by therapists, and to develop methods which could provide solutions to the problems isolated by the analysis of the treatment process. The book, like the project, has two main divisions, the research with neurotic clinic patients and a controlled study of group therapy with hospitalized schizophrenics. According to the reviewer, whatever its failings as pure research, there can be no question that this is an important and useful book. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of The Experimental Psychology of Sensory Behaviour.

Reviews the book, The Experimental Psychology of Sensory Behaviour by John F. Corso. The evaluation of John Corso's book depends to a great extent upon the use for which it is intended. As a text for an experimental psychology course, this book unfortunately has some serious limitations. This is of considerable value for some types of courses; however, for a course in experimental psychology it would seem desirable to give students a broader range of methodologies than those used in sensory psychology. This is a good, but somewhat limited, experimental psychology text that would need considerable supplementation from other sources in order to be adequate for general experimental courses in psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Some comments on the use of untrained therapists.

A study by Poser, where chronic schizophrenics received group psychotherapy from both untrained and trained therapists, is discussed. The experimental design of the study is questioned: the time factor, male patients treated by female untrained therapists, dropouts, and selection of untrained therapists. The term "group psychotherapy" is poorly defined in this study, since the term covers a variety of therapeutic goals and orientations. The question of criteria becomes obscured. There is no clarification of the motives that bring psychotherapists to work with patients. The lack of clarity confuses workers in the field of psychotherapy since "help" is an ambiguous term which represents everything from compassion to personality change. Motivations and value systems of both patients and therapists must be considered in the type of study Poser has conducted. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Group psychotherapy with addicted populations.

Reviews the book, Group psychotherapy with addicted populations by Philip J. Flores (1988). Dr. Flores has written a handbook which provides a well-documented overview on abstinence-oriented group psychotherapy for chemically (i.e., alcohol and drug) dependent populations. Practitioners, teachers, and students in a variety of disciplines will appreciate this volume's integration of diverse perspectives and also its detailed index. Overall, the reviewer feels that the book has merit. The reviewer found it well written with an admirable combination of conversational and scholarly styles and excellent use of case illustrations. There is information in this volume of value to the novice as well as the experienced group therapist. This book, however, has some flaws and notable omissions. First, the words "addicted populations" in the title may mislead some, who may not realize that the focus is primarily on alcohol and secondarily on illicit drugs, while other habitual or compulsive behaviors (cigarette smoking, eating disorders, etc.) are not mentioned at all. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Personality styles and brief psychotherapy.

Reviews the book, Personality styles and brief psychotherapy by Mardi Horowitz, Charles Marmar, Janice Krupnick, Nancy Wilner, Nancy Kaltreider, and Robert Wallerstein (1984). This book by Horowitz and his colleagues falls in the category of psychodynamic psychotherapy, and in fact lies very close to the heart of traditional, but updated, forms of psychoanalytic psychotherapy. Clinicians who have attempted to master ego-analytic psychotherapy will recognize key concepts in this book that are germane to traditional therapy. These include: stressful events that precipitate psychopathology in specific personality types; the concept of wish, defense, and the dynamic compromise behavior/attitude; patterns of defensive organization and cognitive style typical of personality types; therapeutic tactics related to those personality patterns; and the triad of insight-transference relationship, current relationships, and parental relationships. Horowitz's book has value for a number of overlapping purposes. It should be included in a course on short-term therapy, it is an up-to-date and sophisticated review of personality theory, it is important in the empirical refining of psychodynamic technique, short- or long-term, and it is essential for an understanding of how psychotherapy research is indeed beginning to have a significant impact on psychotherapy theory and technique. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Group therapy for medically ill patients.

Reviews the book, Group therapy for medically ill patients edited by James L. Spira (see record 1997-97516-000). This book provides information on group psychotherapy for the management of acute and chronically ill medical patients. The text is divided into sections dealing with illness prevention, threats-to-life illnesses, and maladaptive health behaviors. According to the reviewer, this book lacks comprehensiveness and only its reference sections serve as a means to redirect the aggressive reader to a foundation and expansion for each topic. In addition, it may cover too little while attempting to cover a great deal. However, this text serves as a convenient, albeit incomplete reference and is a worthy addition to the clinician's library. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Relative endurance of unipolar depression treatment effects: Longitudinal follow-up.

This study represents a 2.25-year follow-up to a treatment study reported earlier (P. D. McLean & A. R. Hakstian, [see PA, Vol 63:1360]) in which 121 unipolar depressed outpatients were treated by either (a) nondirective psychotherapy, (b) behavior therapy, (c) pharmacotherapy, or (d) relaxation therapy. A nondepressed, normal control group was evaluated on the same 28 measures and 6 intervals for contrast purposes. Behavior therapy patients alone were significantly improved in the areas of mood, personal productivity, and social activity, relative to treatment control patients over the follow-up period. Also, twice as many behavior therapy patients (i.e., 64%) fell within one standard deviation of the normal, nondepressed control group distribution on depressed mood, compared with nondirective psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy patients, when scores were aggregated across the 6 assessment points. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Reassessing psychotherapy research.

Reviews the book, Reassessing psychotherapy research edited by Robert L. Russell (see record 1994-98237-000). This book, with its international representation of contributors, attempts to address central issues in contemporary ("fourth generation") psychotherapy research. The main tenet is that much dominant psychotherapy research has focused on outcome, curative factors, and scientific rigor and overlooked the richness of therapeutic process. This book does as the title suggests: addresses content and process issues, balanced with methodological sophistication. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Women and group psychotherapy.

Reviews the book, Women and group psychotherapy by Betsy DeChant (see record 1996-98407-000). In the introduction to this book, Editor Betsy DeChant describes the "myth of the cave." This myth is based on the concept that from the beginning of time, men and women have had radically different modes of expression and communication. Women invented spoken language and men, written language. But because women's language was not seen as equal to men's, women have had to learn the male's format for telling their story and gaining respect. The author uses 523 pages of "men's language" to describe a process that, if we trust this myth, is inherently female, but was usurped for generations by the male-constructed creation of psychotherapy. The book has 18 chapters together with commentaries. It is divided into three sections: Section I, Philosophical Perspective on the Feminist Approach, Section II, Theoretical Perspectives on the Treatment of Women in Groups; and Section III covers Guidelines for the Therapist: Leadership and Training Issues. To read this book from start to finish, one must have patience and a serious academic bent. The busy clinician will not find a "quick fix" and must be prepared to read selectively. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Removing the roadblocks: Group psychotherapy with substance abusers and family members.

Reviews the book, Removing the roadblocks: Group psychotherapy with substance abusers and family members by Marsha Vanicelli (1992). It is rare to find a theoretically guided treatment text covering the topics of family and addictive behaviors which avoids a heavy handed lecture on either the absolute unquestionable value of abstinence (and its supremacy as the only goal of treatment) or on the ridiculousness of abstinence-based treatment. Too often, the former are read only by adherents of AA, the latter by academics and apparently never shall the twain meet. Vannicelli, however, takes a different tack. Rather than get caught up in that debate, she takes a pragmatic stance based on the importance of affective experience and group process. She argues that substances minimize individuals' ability to truly experience the emotional reactions so central to the type of group therapy she outlines. This book is clearly directed at the practically oriented therapist. Issues are covered in a sensible and quite usable way. In fact, in some respects, the title is unfortunate in that many individual therapists who could benefit from at least some of Vannicelli's clinical experience are unlikely to select this "group psychotherapy" text. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Group exercises for adolescents: A manual for therapists.

Reviews the book, Group exercises for adolescents: A manual for therapists by Susan Carrell (see record 1993-98929-000). Practitioners who dare venture into the bewildering, unpredictable realm of group psychotherapy with adolescents likely will find Carrell's Group Exercises for Adolescents to be a wonderful navigational aid. While the bulk of the book contains 25 group exercises, two useful overview chapters precede the application section. A brief opening chapter offers some developmental highlights of adolescence, while the second chapter provides a Cook's tour of practical suggestions and recommendations for conducting adolescent groups. The latter is a superb introduction to the problems and prospects of group work with this challenging population, and it can almost stand alone as a primer for less experienced practitioners who are approaching the group leadership role with an adolescent group for the first time. More experienced leaders, however, will not be bored. While limited in scope, Carrell's Manual covers well its intended content. The book is well-written and carefully organized, and brings great clarity to each area examined, benefiting greatly from a distinct lack of jargon. A spiral binding facilitates use. While the workbook foregoes a scholarly base, its strength resides in pragmatism. These are methods that have worked well for the author, and which have survived the critical appraisal of a pool of over 300 teen clients who rated the exercises for effectiveness. The book is recommended highly as a valuable resource for therapists of any discipline who facilitate psychotherapy groups for adolescents. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of N=1: Experimental Studies of Single Cases.

Reviews the book, N = 1: Experimental Studies of Single Cases by P. O. Davidson and C. G. Costello (see record 1971-09182-000). Books of readings are generally nothing to get excited about. This book is worth reporting, however, because it brings together for the first time a group of studies describing the application of experimental methodology to the single case. The authors believe that such an approach has bridging value as between experimental and clinical psychology, as well as providing a useful technology. The readings are organized as follows: Rationale and Method, Application in Assessment of Behavior, and Applications in Treatment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Boundaries in psychotherapy: Ethical and clinical explorations.

Reviews the book, Boundaries in psychotherapy: Ethical and clinical explorations by Ofer Zur (see record 2007-00030-000). In this book, Dr. Zur outlines a number of the salient boundary issues in psychotherapy. As such, this book provides a valuable resource for practising mental health professionals regardless of theoretical orientation. Specifically, this book aims to shed light on the definition and use of psychotherapeutic boundaries by providing a context-based and comprehensive discussion of diverse boundary issues. The book is divided into four parts, and each of the first three parts is made up of four chapters. Part 1, "Boundaries in Context," addresses an assortment of topics concerning boundaries in psychotherapy. Part 2 focuses on issues that affect the therapeutic frame. Part 3 addresses boundary issues that exist within the therapeutic encounter. In Part 4, appropriately titled "Final Thoughts," the author provides a cogent epilogue that highlights the complex and multifaceted nature of professional boundaries and stresses the importance of conducting risk- benefit analyses and other diligent risk management studies when contemplating crossing boundaries in psychotherapy. With regard to the author's stated objectives for writing this book, he accomplishes his goal of shedding light on the definition and use of psychotherapeutic boundaries. Overall, the author's simple and clear writing style makes this an extremely easy book to read. Other strengths include the succinct definition of terms and inclusion of practical tips and suggestions to help the reader navigate the complexities that entrench boundary issues in psychotherapy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Forms of Intersubjectivity in Infant Research and Adult Attachment.

Reviews the book, Forms of Intersubjectivity in Infant Research and Adult Attachment by Beatrice Beebe, Steven Knoblauch, Judith Rustin, and Dorienne Sorter (2005). In this book, the authors use their 10 years of collaborative work to produce an in-depth and well-constructed discussion of verbal and nonverbal forms of intersubjectivity as observed in the treatment setting and as evidenced by data generated from more mainstream child development studies. They move beyond the lack of integration between these related though often dramatically disconnected disciplines and build on infant researchers' understanding of "prereflective" caregiver-child interactions to offer a new theory of intersubjectivity that enhances our understanding of the clinical interaction with adult patients. This book is not for those therapists who are interested in learning well-specified, new interventions to use in their psychotherapy practice. It is also not suggested for those clinicians who do not have some background in psychoanalytic theory and practice. It is, however, recommended for those clinicians who work psychodynamically and are interested in developing their awareness of the nonverbal aspects of treatment and the co-construction of the therapeutic encounter. This book would also be useful to those in the field of psychotherapy research as it poses new questions about the nature of the therapeutic process and suggests the importance of examining the role that implicit, nonverbal interactions play in psychotherapy. Beebe, Knoblauch, Rustin, and Sorter's book is well constructed, persuasively argued, and highly recommended. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Words were originally magic.

Reviews the book, Words were originally magic by Steve de Shazer (see record 1994-97917-000). This book is written from both a philosophical and clinical perspective. It deals with the importance of language in psychotherapy. The author sets the foundation relative to language structure, meaning, and therapeutic change modalities in preparation for the discussion of brief problem focused psychotherapy. Case examples from actual therapy sessions are then presented in illustration of therapy process and outcome. The reviewer believes that this book has significant relevancy for current practice. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A national survey of group psychotherapy services in correctional facilities.

Facilitating group psychotherapy in correctional settings presents dilemmas and concerns that are unmatched in other environments, often leaving clinicians grasping for therapeutic advantages. This article provides information regarding national practices of group psychotherapy services for male inmates in state correctional facilities (n?=?79) as reported by correctional mental health providers (n?=?162). The general findings of this study will be of interest to group psychotherapy providers employed in correctional facilities; however, of particular importance for doctoral-level psychologists is their potential role in fulfilling a need for the active development and evaluation of group psychotherapy programs in correctional settings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)