psych 181 - chp 15

Compare and contrast the major psychotherapeutic techniques described in your book, including psychoanalysis, humanistic therapy, behavior therapy, cognitive therapy, and cognitive-behavioral therapy.

psychoanalysis - Psychoanalytic therapy looks at how the unconscious mind influences thoughts and behaviors. Meet with therapist 1x a week humanistic therapy - gestalt therapy (which focuses on thoughts and feelings here and now, instead of root causes) and client-centered therapy (which provides a supportive environment in which clients can reestablish their true identity). behavior therapy - Behaviour therapy is a broad term referring to psychotherapy, behaviour analytical, or a combination of the two therapies. cognitive therapy - Helps patients understand the thoughts and feelings that influence behaviors. CBT is commonly used to treat a wide range of disorders, including phobias, addictions, depression, and anxiety. cognitive-behavioral therapy - a short-term, goal-oriented psychotherapy treatment that takes a hands-on, practical approach to problem-solving

Describe how, by taking care of themselves with a healthy lifestyle, people might find some relief from depression, and explain how this reinforces the idea that we are biopsychosocial systems.

- As we have seen over and again, a human being is an integrated biopsychosocial system. -For both children and adults, outdoor activity in natural environments reduces stress and promotes health. Human brains were designed for physical activity and social engagement. There are training seminars promoting therapeutic lifestyle change, which includes aerobic exercise, adequate sleep, light exposure, social connection, antirumination, and nutritional supplements.

Describe the three elements shared by all forms of psychotherapy.

All psychotherapies offer new hope for demoralized people; a fresh perspective; and (if the therapist is effective) an empathic, trusting, and caring relationship.

Discuss whether psychotherapy works, and explain how we can know.

Clients' and therapists' positive testimonials cannot prove that psychotherapy is actually effective, and the placebo effect makes it difficult to judge whether improvement occurred because of the treatment. Using meta-analyses to statistically combine the results of hundreds of randomized psychotherapy outcome studies, researchers have found that those not undergoing treatment often improve, but those undergoing psychotherapy are more likely to improve more quickly, and with less chance of relapse.

Discuss how alternative therapies fare under scientific scrutiny.

Controlled research has not supported the claims of eye movement and desensitization (EMDR) therapy. Light exposure therapy does seem to relieve the symptoms of seasonal affective disorder (SAD).

Discuss the aims and benefits of group and family therapies.

Group therapy sessions can help more people and cost less per person than individual therapy would. Clients may benefit from knowing others have similar problems and from getting feedback and reassurance. Family therapy views a family as an interactive system and attempts to help members discover the roles they play and to learn to communicate more openly and directly.

Discuss how psychotherapy and the biomedical therapies differ.

Psychotherapy is an emotionally charged, confiding interaction between a trained therapist and someone suffering from psychological difficulties. The biomedical therapies are prescribed medications or medical procedures that act directly on a patient's nervous system.

Discuss how culture and values influence the therapist-client relationship.

Therapists differ in the values that influence their aims. These differences may create problems when therapists work with clients with different cultural or religious perspectives. A person seeking therapy may want to ask about the therapist's treatment approach, values, credentials, and fees.

Describe the goals and techniques of psychoanalysis, and discuss how they have been adapted in psychodynamic therapy.

Through psychoanalysis, Sigmund Freud tried to give people self-insight and relief from their disorders by bringing anxiety-laden feelings and thoughts into conscious awareness. Psychoanalytic techniques included using free association and interpretation of instances of resistance and transference. Psychodynamic therapy has been influenced by traditional psychoanalysis but differs from it in many ways, including the lack of belief in id, ego, and superego. This contemporary therapy is briefer, less expensive, and more focused on helping the client find relief from current symptoms. Psychodynamic therapists help clients understand how past relationships create themes that may be acted out in present relationships.

Identify and describe the drug therapies, and explain how double-blind studies help researchers evaluate a drug's effectiveness.

psychopharmacology, the study of drug effects on mind and behavior, has helped make drug therapy the most widely used biomedical therapy. Antipsychotic drugs, used in treating schizophrenia, block dopamine activity. Side effects may include tardive dyskiesia (with involuntary movements of facial muscles, tongue, and limbs) or increased risk of obesity and diabetes. Antianxiety drugs, which depress central nervous system activity, are used to treat anxiety disorders. These drugs can be physically and psychologically addictive. Antidepressant drugs, which increases the availability of serotonin and norepinephrine, are used for depression, with modest effectiveness beyond that of a placebo drug. The antidepressants known as selective serotonin re uptake inhibitors (often called SSRI drugs) are now used to treat other disorders, including strokes and anxiety disorders. Lithium and Depakote are mood stabilizers prescribed for those with bipolar disorder. Studies may use a double blind procedure to avoid the placebo effect and researcher's bias.

Discuss the goals and techniques of cognitive therapy and of cognitive-behavioral therapy.

- The goal of cognitive therapy is for clients to learn to identify and alter the dysfunctional beliefs that predispose them to distort experiences. 1. The client learns to monitor negative, automatic thoughts 2. Recognizes the connection between thoughts, emotions, behavior 3. Examines the evidence for and against distorted automatic thoughts 4. Substitutes more realistic interpretations for the biased thoughts 5. Identifies the dysfunctional beliefs that predispose him or her to distort experiences

Describe the use of brain stimulation and psychosurgery in treating specific disorders.

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), in which a brief electric current is sent through the brain of an anesthetized patient, is an effective, last-resort treatment for severely depressed people who have not responded to other therapy. Newer alternative treatments for depression include - repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) and, - in preliminary clinical experiments, deep-brain stimulation that calms an overactive brain region linked with negative emotions. Psychosurgery removes or destroys brain tissue in hopes of modifying behavior. Radical psychosurgical procedures such as lobotomy were once popular, but neurosurgeons now rarely perform brain surgery to change behavior or moods. Brain surgery is a last- resort treatment because its effects are irreversible.

Identify the basic themes of humanistic therapy, and describe the specific goals and techniques of Rogers' client-centered approach.

Humanistic therapists have focused on clients' current conscious feelings and on their taking responsibility for their own growth. Carl Rogers' client-centered therapy proposed that therapists' most important contributions are to function as a psychological mirror through active listening and to provide a growth-fostering environment of unconditional positive regard, characterized by genuineness, acceptance, and empathy. The humanistic and psychoanalytic therapies are known as insight therapies.

Discuss whether some psychotherapies are more effective than others for specific disorders.

No one type of psychotherapy is generally superior to all others. Therapy is most effective for those with clear-cut, specific problems. Some therapies—such as behavior conditioning for treating phobias and compulsions—are more effective for specific disorders. Psychodynamic therapy has been effective for depression and anxiety, and cognitive and cognitive-behavioral therapies have been effective in coping with anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder, and depression. Evidence-based practice integrates the best available research with clinicians' expertise and patients' characteristics, preferences, and circumstances.

State the main premise of therapy based on operant conditioning principles, and describe the views of its proponents and critics.

Operant conditioning therapies are based on the principle that voluntary behaviors are strongly influenced by their consequences. Behavior modification procedures thus enforce desired behaviors and withhold reinforcement for, or punish, undesired behaviors. Therapists sometimes create token economies, in which people receive tokens for exhibiting a desired behavior and can later trade the tokens for a privilege or treat. Critics object (1) on the practical grounds that these behaviors may disappear when the tokens are discontinued, and (2) on the ethical grounds that it is not right to control other people's behavior. Proponents counter with the arguments that (1) social or intrinsic rewards can replace the tokens and continue to be reinforcing, and (2) reinforcing adaptive behavior is justified because, with or without behavior modification, rewards and punishers will always control people's behavior.

Explain the rationale of preventive mental health programs, and discuss why it is important to develop resilience.

Preventive mental health programs are based on the idea that many psychological disorders could be prevented by changing oppressive, esteem-destroying environments into more benevolent, nurturing environments that foster growth, self-confidence, and resilience. Struggling with challenges can lead to posttraumatic growth. Community psychologists are often active in preventive mental health programs.

Explain how the basic assumption of behavior therapy differs from the assumptions of psycho-dynamic and humanistic therapies, and describe the techniques used in exposure therapies and aversive conditioning.

To help people alleviate current conflicts and problems, traditional psychoanalytic therapists attempt to explain the origin of behaviors, and humanistic therapists attempt to promote self-acceptance and self-awareness. Behavior therapists assume the problem behaviors are the problem, and they attempt to change them through new learning.