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Strategies and tactics in apparent opposition to desired therapeutic goals are discussed in the context of brief problems-focused therapy. Two types of paradoxical intervention are differentiated: in one, change follows from attempted compliance with a therapeutic directive; in the other, change follows from defiance. Brehm's reactance theory and the Palo Alto brief therapy model offer guidelines for the use of such strategies.

Instances ofnoncompliance or resistance to influence in psychotherapy have been interpreted as reactance phenomena which derive from a motive to restore threatened behavioral freedoms. While reactance is commonly seen as a negative, complicating factor in therapy, reactance phenomena can be used, even mobilized in the service of therapeutic change. In fact, the utilization of reactance provides a rationale for a class of rather potent paradoxical interventions. We propose that there are two fundamentally different rationales for using therapeutic paradox. Compliance-based paradoxical strategies effect change by virtue of the client's attempting to comply with a therapeutic directive. Defiance-based interventions, by contrast, work because the client rebels against the therapist's directive. Applications to specific clinical problems are discussed. This paper will attempt to demonstrate how J. W. Brehm's (1966Brehm's ( , 1972 theory of psychological reactance offers a useful framework for understanding influence processes in strategic, problem-focused psychotherapy, and for understanding the how, when, and why of certain paradoxical interventions.Therapy, in our view, is most fundamentally a social influence process, wherein the therapist's main task and responsibility is to help people change by achieving agreed-upon goals as efficiently as possible. While there are many ways to go about it, many methods (and many rationales) for influencing clients toward * Requests for reprints should be sent to Howard

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Objective: Evaluate the effect of height and overactivation on the force system produced by composite nickel-titanium T-loops. Material and Methods: Forty nickel-titanium/stainless steel (SS) T-loops were divided into four groups according to height (7 or 6 mm) and activation/deactivation protocol (7 mm or 7 mm with 2 mm of overactivation). An Orthodontic Force Tester recorded the y-axis force and the x-axis moment produced for each 0.5 mm of deactivation, while the moment(x)-to-force(y) (M/F) ratio was calculated. The data were analyzed by three analyses of variance of repeated measures to detect differences and interactions between height and protocol on the three variables. Results: T-loops with a height of 6 mm produced higher forces (2.97 N vs. 2.66 N) than those of 7 mm. The moments were similar, whereas the M/F was larger for the 7-mm loops (5.76 mm vs. 4.92 mm). The conventional activation produced higher forces (2.99 N vs. 2.64 N), higher moments (16.2 Nmm vs. 13.59 Nmm) but the same M/F. The M/F showed an interaction with deactivation. Conclusion: The 6-mm-high T-loops produced higher forces, but lower M/F. The conventional protocol produced higher forces and moments. The M/F ratio was similar for both protocols, but overactivation produced a nearly constant M/F throughout deactivation. The use of a 7-mm-high overactivated segmented nickel-titanium loop might improve the performance of orthodontic space closure.

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