Psychotherapy process variables distinguishing the inherently helpful person from the professional psychotherapist.

Abstract

Therapeutic hours conducted by analytically oriented, experientially oriented, and nonprofessional ("inherently helpful" college professors) therapists were rated along eight process dimensions-therapist exploration, therapist directiveness, feeling attention, task orientation, therapeutic relationship, patient exploration, patient negativism, and patient psychic distress. Between-group differences were obtained on six of the eight dimensions. Only patient negativism and patient exploration failed to yield significant effects. These results substantially replicated the findings of previous analogue investigations.Although nonprofessional therapists often assume major responsibilities for mental health care, little is known about how the untrained but "inherently helpful" nonprofessional conducts therapy. In simulated interviews, untrained "therapists" tend to make directive interventions rather than exploring patients' feelings or experiences (cf. D'Augelli, Danish, Si Brock, 1976). Nonetheless, in similar mock interactions, nonprofessionals (e.g., untrained college students; Pope, Nudler, VonKorff, & McGee, 1974) were as warm, genuine, and empathic as experienced therapists. Indeed, the interviewees felt more accepted and were less anxious in interviews with nonprofessional, as opposed to professional, therapists.Previous discussions of professional-nonprofessional differences have not taken into account the effects of therapists' theoretical orientations. However, evidence from surveys of therapists' self-described techniques (cf. Sundland & Barker, 1962) and from studies of therapists' responses in analogue interviews (cf. Strupp, I960) suggests that analytically oriented therapists rely on interpretive techniques, whereas Rogerian or experiential therapists focus on establishing warm, personal relationships.

The role of the tutor in a college of further education: A comparison of skills used by personal tutors and by student counsellors when working with students in distress

“…Advice-giving is a part of the teaching role, and has also been emphasised in the guidance programmes established for tutors in the 1980s, but is seen as much less important in most schools of counselling. Although this question measures attitude rather than behaviour, it supports the finding of Gomes-Schwartz & Schwartz (1978) that non-professionals engaged in much more advice-giving than did professional helpers.…”

“…d'Augelli L? Levy, 1978;Gomes-Schwartz & Schwartz, 1978;Perkins & Atkinson, 1973) that untrained helpers behave differently from trained counsellors. In particular, they tend to be more talkative, ask more questions, offer more frequent advice, provide more self-disclosing information, ignore helpees' immediate affective experiences and make little use of the skills of restatement and reflection.…”

Assessment of Patient and Therapist Perspectives of Process: A Revision of the Vanderbilt Psychotherapy Process Scale

“…Using the VPPS, researchers have found that patient perspectives of the therapeutic relationship were more related to outcome than therapist perspectives (11). The VPPS has also been used in studies of time-limited psychodynamic psychotherapy (12), supervisory relationships (13), and the process differences between professional therapists and lay or peer counselors (14,15).…”

Θεραπευτικές Παρεμβάσεις Και Σημαντικές Ενδοσυνεδριακές Στιγμές Στη Συστημική Οικογενειακή Ψυχοθεραπεία

“…Σε αυτό το πλαίσιο, η μελέτη της εμφάνισης και αναγνώρισης σημαντικών ενδοσυνεδριακών στιγμών αποτελεί μια σημαντική παράμετρο για την κατανόηση της διαδικασίας της ψυχοθεραπευτικής αλλαγής, δεδομένου ότι η εμφάνιση αυτών των στιγμών έχει συνδεθεί με επιτυχή θεραπευτική έκβαση και με θεραπευτική αλλαγή (Gomes-Schwartz, 1978. Orlinsky & Howard, 1978.…”