Populations positively affected by ACT include: 
- College students
- Parents of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder
- Individuals with PTSD after Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)
- Psychotic Patients 
- Depressed patients
- Individuals with chronic pain conditions
- Individuals with both Generalized Anxiety Disorder and Depression
- Physical Therapy Patients

Populations that Benefit from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)

The process/way of living through which behaviors and actions are strictly guided by psychological experiences (thoughts, feelings, etc.) rather than ones’ meaningful values or by actions that might be effective. 

Psychological Inflexibility 

Although mindfulness interventions are commonly thought of as a treatment solely for mental and psychological illness, various mindfulness interventions have been used in physical rehabilitation.

Mindfulness in Physical Rehabilitation 

- Improves processes of change amongst tested subjects
- Reduces psychological symptoms such as social anxiety and depression
- improves mood processes amongst individuals with PTSD after Traumatic Brain Injury
- it does not require formal practice
- Lessen the likelihood of re-hospitilization for Chronic Mental illness
- Lessen Believability of positive schizophrenic symptoms
- Can decrease symptom occurrence
- less time consuming compared to practices like MBSR
- a trans-diagnostic treatment method: it can treat more than one disorder at a time


Benefits of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy 

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy has been applied in the following formats to bring about positive effects: 

- Self-help programs (self-guided and clinician assisted)

- group interventions (teach skills together)

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy: Formats of Application 

-Acceptance

-Cognitive Defusion

-Being Present

-Self as Context

-Values

-Committed Action



Acceptance and Commitment Therapy: 6 core processes (psychological flexibility model) 

There are many online services and apps that are available that allow people to practice Mindfulness Interventions such as Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) from one’s own device. The ease of accessibility, lower cost, and convenience of these services are some of the pros of online MBI practices over face-to-face MBIs. 

Mindfulness Apps and Online Services

- Values 
- Committed Action 
- Defusion 
- Acceptance 
- Self as Context 
- Connecting with the present moment

Six Processes of Acceptance Commitment Therapy

A study examined the effectiveness of an adolescent ACT prevention program. The program aimed to use ACT methods to prevent teens from developing anxiety, depression, and other psychopathologies rather than using it as a means to treat these symptoms, which is how ACT is typically used. The study used an ACT condition and a control condition, with students in the ACT group participating in the ACT program while the control group participated in normal class activities. Both students and teachers were accepting of the program and found it feasible to implement it into the regular class time schedule. Additionally, students in the ACT condition demonstrated a difference in anxiety/depression scores. 

ACT Prevention Program for Adolescents

Studies have indicated that there are several ways in which ACT can be adapted to suit teenagers' biological, psychological, and social development. Some ways that this can be done is by involving teens' parents and peers, using personalized goal setting, incorporating the teen's interests, and explaining more abstract concepts using more cognitive methods. It is also important to note that evidence has suggested that ACT may be more suitable for some teens more than others, with it tending to be more effective with teens who are able to think more abstractly. 

Adapting ACT for Adolescents 

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) centers on the utilization of acceptance, values, mindfulness and conventional behavior change methods with the goal of reducing psychological inflexibility. 

Xavier University

Wake Forest University

Villanova University

New York University

University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Acceptance is a conscious choice of an individual to experience symptoms more fully in an effort to serve one's valued goals. This aspect of therapeutic mindfulness tends to reduce the effects of avoidance and improves psychological flexibility. 

Acceptance

The general idea of RFT is that the core of human language and cognition is the learned and controlled ability to relate events mutually and in combination with each other in context, and to alter the functions of specific events based on their relations to others.

Relational Frame Theory

- Mindfulness-based stress reduction
- Acceptance and commitment therapy

Therapeutic Interventions that Teach Everyday Mindfulness

- Mindfulness-based stress reduction
- Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy
- Dialectical behavioral therapy
- Acceptance and commitment therapy
- Mindfulness-based relapse prevention
- Mindfulness-based relationship enhancement
- Mindful self-compassion training
- Mindfulness-based eating awareness training

Examples of Mindfulness Interventions (masterlist)

- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
- Dialectical Behavioral Therapy 

Examples of Mindfulness-informed Interventions

- Psychodynamic Therapy 
- Supportive Therapy 
- Humanistic Therapy
- Cognitive Therapy
- Behavior Therapy
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Integrative or Holistic Therapy
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT)
- Creative Therapy
- Play Therapy

Types of Psychotherapy

Levin, Michael E., Haeger, Jack A., Pierce, Benjamin G., Twohig, Michael P. (2017). Web-based acceptance and commitment therapy for mental health problems in college students: a randomized controlled trial. Behavior Modification, 41(1), 141-162. Retrieved from: https://journals-sagepub-com.ezp3.lib.umn.edu/doi/10.1177/0145445516659645  


Web-Based Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Mental Health Problems in College Students: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy 

Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) is an educational therapy program with the goal of teaching individuals both formal and informal/everyday mindfulness techniques to help reduce psychological distress.

Standard MBSR programs are 8-weeks in duration consisting of 26 hours with a 6-hour one day class (total of 32 hours). Participants are also expected to practice 45 minutes per day at home during the program.

Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction

Evidence-based psychotherapy originally developed to treat individuals with borderline personality disorder and chronically suicidal individuals. Treatment focuses on mindfulness, emotional regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy 

Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) is an 8-week psychotherapy program that includes elements of both Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) with the goal of enhancing one’s psychological well-being through formal/informal meditation practices. 

Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy

A combination of relapse prevention which is a cognitive behavioral therapy with mindfulness-based stress reduction and mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. It is a mindfulness based aftercare approach to prevent those who have suffered from addiction to relapse.

Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention

- MSC is a Self-Compassion intervention program which aims, over 8 weeks, to provide participants with a variety of tools to increase self-compassion, which they can integrate into their lives according to what works best for them. It works to cultivate self-compassion through sitting practice, day-to-day practices and experiential education. 

Mindful Self-Compassion Program (MSC)

Mindfulness-Based Eating Awareness Training (MB-EAT) is an intervention created primarily for Binge Eating Disorder (BED). It is a 10 session intervention that involves teaching patients a variety of mindfulness meditation techniques to address core issues of BED. The program structure focuses on 4 stages that cultivate a non judgmental awareness of the internal experience with eating and external patterns or triggers that continue the cycle of binging. 

Mindfulness-Based Eating Awareness Training

Mindfulness-Based Art Therpay integrates mindfulness meditation skills and aspects of art therapy into an eight week, gender segregated supportive group therapy format.

 Mindfulness-Based Art Therapy (MBAT) 

Dialectical Behavior therapy is a specific form of CBT that is used to help regulate emotions. This type of therapy is usually used to treat individuals with chronic suicidal thoughts, and also people with borderline personality disorders, eating disorders, and PTSD. This approach helps teach new skills to individuals to help them take personal responsibility to change unhealthy behavior. This approach involves both group and individual therapy.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy



Integrative Body Psychotherapy is a holistic approach to treatment, integrating multiple modalities. IBP aims to increase awareness of the ways the body and mind relate and address obstacles to well-being. IBP practitioners teach individuals how to recognize and understand steps they can take to move away from these obstacles. IBP is considered to be a helpful approach for somatization, relationship concerns, and the effects of past trauma.



Integrative Body Psychotherapy




Supportive therapy helps individuals to develop their own resources through guidance and encouragement. This approach helps to reduce anxiety, build self-esteem, improve social and community functioning, and strengthen coping mechanisms.



Supportive Therapy




A therapy approach that is utilized to treat chronic depression that incorporates several components of cognitive-behavioral therapy and interpersonal psychotherapy. This therapy helps people realize the outcomes of their behavior and actions, how to interact healthily with others, change negative coping mechanisms, and better interpersonal skills.

Cognitive Behavioral Analysis System of Psychotherapy (CBASP)

A type of psychotherapy that aims to help clients become more self-aware and embrace themselves. Humanistic therapy centers around the belief in individuals' ability to make rational choices and grow to their fullest potential, while also highlighting the significance of empathy and concern for others. Humanistic philosophers such as Jean-Paul Sartre, Martin Buber, and Søren Kierkegaard have played a significant role in shaping this type of psychotherapy. 

Humanistic Therapy

Integrative or holistic therapy is characterized by therapists who do not limit themselves to a single type of Psychotherapy. Instead, they incorporate various elements from different approaches and customize their treatment to meet the specific needs of each individual client

Integrative or Holistic Therapy

Cognitive therapy is a psychotherapeutic approach grounded in the idea that a person's thoughts directly dictate their emotions and behaviors. By helping clients identify and alter dysfunctional thought patterns, therapists aim to alleviate emotional distress and foster more logical, rational interpretations of situations.

Cognitive Therapy

Behavior therapy is a therapeutic approach that applies principles of learning to help clients change undesirable behaviors, without focusing on the unconscious mind. It operates on the belief that dysfunctional behaviors, such as phobias or bedwetting, can be resolved by teaching clients new, more constructive behaviors. This therapy utilizes both classical and operant conditioning techniques to facilitate this change.

Behavior Therapy

Compassion-focused therapy is an integrated psychotherapeutic approach designed to train individuals in cultivating inner safeness, developing a self-generated internal soothing system, and replacing shame and harsh self-criticism with qualities such as self-kindness, self-understanding, contentment, and gentle self-care.

Compassion-focused Therapy

Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is a form of psychotherapy centered on helping clients examine and change the relationship between their thoughts and their behaviors. The primary goal is to identify and modify cognitive distortions and self-defeating actions, thereby changing not only how individuals think but also how they act in response to various situations.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

A type of therapy that helps clients, often children, to prevent or resolve psychosocial difficulties and achieve optimal growth by utilizing a therapeutic process of play. It harnesses children's natural urge to explore and uses it to help them express emotions that might be otherwise difficult to communicate. Play objects allow the child to displace difficult feelings, dreams, fantasies, and traumas. A therapist may observe the behaviors of the child while playing and also utilize play therapy to assist in the diagnosis process. Both nondirective and directed play therapy are possible.

Play Therapy

The sociocultural model in therapy emphasizes the influence of societal and cultural contexts on an individual's mental health. This therapeutic approach involves integrating a client's cultural and social norms into the treatment process from the very beginning. Therapists collaborate with clients to understand their specific cultural patterns, using this information to develop a personalized treatment plan tailored to their unique situation.

Sociocultural Model in Therapy

The psychodynamic perspective is a modern therapeutic approach that evolved from Sigmund Freud's psychoanalytic theories. While it continues to focus on the influence of internal drives, unconscious forces, and childhood experiences on behavior, its application in therapy is typically less intensive than traditional psychoanalysis. The goal is to help individuals gain self-awareness and change problematic patterns in their thoughts, feelings, and relationships.

Psychodynamic Therapy

A client in a therapy session states, "I gave a presentation at work and my boss didn't praise it, so I'm convinced I'm going to be fired. I'm a total failure." The therapist responds, "Let's examine that thought. What is the evidence that not receiving praise means you will be fired? Is there another way to interpret your boss's silence? We can work together to challenge this pattern of thinking and develop more balanced perspectives." Which therapeutic approach is this therapist most likely using?

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