This review discusses selected neurobiologic and genetic factors-including noradrenergic and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis markers, oxytocin pathways, and serotonin transporter and brain-derived neurotrophic factor gene polymorphisms-in the context of resilience to stress, with an emphasis on social support. Social support's impact on medical and psychiatric health outcomes is reviewed, and putative mediators are discussed. The reviewed literature indicates that social support is exceptionally important to maintaining good physical and psychological health in the presence of genetic, developmental, and other environmental risks. Future studies should continue to explore the neurobiologic factors associated with social support's contribution to stress resilience.
There is a considerable gap between research evidence for psychotherapy and clinical training. Until the training programs in the major disciplines providing psychotherapy increase training in EBT, the gap between research evidence and clinical practice will remain.
Objectives: A national survey finds that 62% of social work programs do not require didactic and clinical supervision in any empirically supported psychotherapy (EST). The authors report the results of analysis of national survey data using two alternative classifications of EST to determine if the results are because of the definition of EST used in the national survey. Method: Psychotherapies in the national survey are classified by three definitions of EST. Data are weighted to provide estimates generalizable to the population of social work programs. Results: The classification of EST does not have a major impact on the findings of the national survey. The national survey definition produce estimates of training in any EST in social work that fall between the two alternate definitions. Conclusions: Regardless of which definition is used, the data clearly show that the majority of social work programs offer little training in EST.
Objectives: Determining a patient’s psychiatric diagnosis is an important first step for the selection of empirically supported treatments and a critical component of evidence-based practice. Structured diagnostic assessment covers the range of psychiatric diagnoses and is usually more complete and accurate than unstructured assessment. Method: We conducted a national survey of training in empirically supported psychotherapy in which information on teaching of structured diagnostic assessment using Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition (DSM-IV) criteria was collected from a probability sample of accredited social work, psychiatry residency, and clinical psychology programs in the United States. Results: A minority of programs required both a didactic and clinical supervision in structured diagnostic assessment. Conclusions: Gaps in the training of clinicians have implications for the appropriate care of patients.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.