Key factors in psychotherapy training: an analysis of trainers’, trainees’ and psychotherapists’ points of view

Abstract

The literature on clinical training lacks identifications of the factors that are most relevant in training programs; accordingly, the main aim of this work is to fill this research gap by assessing which factors that trainers, trainees and psychotherapists consider most relevant in psychotherapy training programs. A secondary aim is to identify whether these factors differ among trainers, trainees and psychotherapists. An ad hoc questionnaire was created and administered at 24 psychotherapy schools from 14 institutions; the sample included 641 trainees, 172 trainers and 218 psychotherapists of various theoretical orientations. The questionnaire included 63 items and used a 5-point Likert scale. An exploratory factor analysis was completed to identify the latent structure. The reliability of the dimensions was then checked. Finally, an analysis of variance and a multivariate analysis of variance were completed to achieve the study’s aims. Four factors emerged from the study’s results: trainers’ relational characteristics, supervision, transmission of clinical know-how, and theoretical background and technical support. All these factors displayed acceptable reliability and internal consistency. Moreover, their relative rankings varied based on the participants’ roles and theoretical backgrounds. This study’s results indicate that the new instrument’s psychometric qualities are acceptable. It thus could be used to develop a new approach to psychotherapy training, as this study’s results regarding trainees’ needs underline the differences between trainees’ perceptions of those needs, as compared to trainers’ and psychotherapists’ perceptions.

Perceived professional development of Chinese psychotherapy trainees: a pilot study

“…In a survey of more than 2500 Norwegian and German psychiatrists and psychologists, Lorentzen, Rønnestad, and Orlinsky ( 2011 ) emphasized the importance of direct patient contact, supervision, and personal therapy for the training of therapists, regardless of therapists’ professional background. In a more recent study trainers’ relational competencies was detected as the main important factor, among the obtained factors, in training activities, which suggested the quality of the trainer-trainee relationship as a relevant mediator in the development of clinical competence of trainees (Rocco, Gennaro, Filugelli, Squarcina, & Antonelli, 2019 ).…”

“…Researchers have begun to pay attention to psychotherapy trainees and psychotherapy training only recently. Studies focused on the process of professional development of psychotherapy trainees, the interrelatedness of professional development and psychotherapeutic work as well as factors of psychotherapy training that facilitate or impede trainees’ development and their clinical practice (Carlsson, 2012 ; De Bei, Rocco, & Salcuni, 2019 ; Rønnestad & Skovholt, 2003 ; Rønnestad & Ladany, 2006 ; Rønnestad, Orlinsky, Schröder, Skovholt, & Willutzki, 2019 ).…”

An appraisal of psychotherapy training during psychiatry residency program in India: A national survey

“…Several factors determine the quality of PT, and accounting for all in a survey would be difficult. [ 18 ] Hence, based on various Indian guidelines and recommendations, we hypothesized that having didactic lectures, supervised sessions, dedicated clinical rotations, or posting, keeping a log, and having standard operating procedures (SOPs) or policies related to PT as proxy markers for the goodness of PT. [ 16 18 ] Therefore, a questionnaire was prepared based on these domains with the objective to assess the quality of PT received during the postgraduate training and its impact on the current psychiatric practice among Indian psychiatrists.…”

Intensive short-term dynamic psychotherapy provided by novice psychotherapists: effects on symptomatology and psychological structure in patients with anxiety disorders

“…RCTs can create a distance between the results obtained by the analysis in the laboratory and the results as obtained in the daily normal clinical practices. This may especially be the case with young psychotherapists where the distance between lab and normal practice may great for various reasons including the quality of the received training (Rocco, Gennaro, Filugelli, Squarcina, & Antonelli, 2019), the impact of the therapist characteristics (Lingiardi, Muzi, Tanzilli, & Carone, 2018) and the ability to recognize and manage countertransference (Rocco, De Bei, Negri, & Filipponi, 2021). In the attempt to understand the role these factors play in determining the intervention's effectiveness, scholars tried to compare the outcomes of psychotherapy provided by expert therapists to the outcomes of psychotherapy provided by less expert therapists.…”