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

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. 

Acceptance and Commitment 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?

- 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

Michigan State University

New York University

University of Texas at Austin

Columbia University

Google

University of San Diego

Psychotherapy, also known as talk therapy, is a psychological treatment that employs a variety of methods to help individuals overcome personal problems, resolve emotional difficulties, and achieve personal growth. The primary goals are to help people find relief from distress, seek solutions to challenges, and modify unhelpful patterns of thinking and acting. Psychotherapy can be utilized as a standalone treatment or in conjunction with other approaches, such as biomedical therapy.

Psychotherapy

Casarella, J. (2020, July 29). Types of Psychotherapy for Mental Illnesses. WebMD. Retrieved June 29, 2022, from https://www.webmd.com/mental-health/mental-health-psychotherapy

Types of Psychotherapy 

Different approaches to psychotherapy. 2009. American Psychological Association. https://www.apa.org/topics/psychotherapy/approaches

Different approaches to psychotherapy

Spielman, R. M., Jenkins, W. J., & Lovett, M. D. (2020, April 22). Psychology (2nd ed.). OpenStax. https://openstax.org/books/psychology-2e/pages/1-introduction

OpenStax Psychology (2nd ed.) Textbook

* Potential reasons why clients seek therapists of a certain gender
* Does therapist gender matter?
* Practice implications
* Therapist development/Training/Supervision

Gender matching in therapy

- Potential reasons why clients seek therapists of a certain cultural background 
- Does the therapist's culture matter?
- Practice implications

Culture matching in therapy

Involuntary treatment is a form of therapy that an individual is required to attend, rather than choosing to do so on their own. Such mandates often come from state agencies. For example, treatment may be required by the criminal justice system as a condition of parole, or by child protective services following cases of child abuse or neglect.

Involuntary Treatment in Therapy

Voluntary treatment describes a situation where an individual makes a personal choice to attend therapy, typically with the goal of finding relief from distressing symptoms.

Voluntary Treatment in Therapy

Types of Psychotherapy

A prevalent, though often outdated, image of psychotherapy involves a client reclining on a couch and discussing their childhood, while a therapist, reminiscent of Sigmund Freud, passively listens and takes notes. This stereotype primarily reflects early psychoanalytic practices and contrasts with the diverse and modern approaches used today.

Common Stereotype of Psychotherapy

Psychological treatment is delivered in diverse settings to meet various needs. Common locations include community mental health centers and private or community practices. Additionally, specialized environments such as schools provide services for children, while correctional facilities like prisons may offer group therapy for incarcerated individuals.

Settings for Psychological Treatment

According to the American Psychological Association, the effectiveness of psychotherapy is influenced by a combination of three key elements. Successful treatment depends on: 1) The application of evidence-based therapeutic methods tailored to the client's specific problem. 2) The clinical skill and experience of the therapist. 3) The client's individual characteristics, including their personal values, preferences, and cultural background.

Factors for Successful Psychotherapy

Psychotherapy aims to achieve several key outcomes. A primary goal is to relieve emotional distress by addressing a client's thoughts and feelings, while also helping individuals overcome destructive, repetitive patterns. Successful therapy can lead to a reduction in anxiety, depression, and maladaptive behaviors. Furthermore, it equips individuals with healthy new behaviors, enabling them to better express emotions, enhance their relationships, adopt a more positive mindset, and improve their performance in work or school settings.

Goals and Outcomes of Psychotherapy

Psychotherapy is administered through several different modalities, or formats, to address diverse clinical needs. The most prevalent modalities include individual therapy, which involves one-on-one sessions between a client and therapist, as well as family therapy, couples therapy, and group therapy.

Treatment Modalities in Psychotherapy

Read the following scenario and answer the question that follows.

Suitability of Psychological Treatment

A college student is experiencing overwhelming anxiety about their academic performance, which causes them to procrastinate on assignments and avoid attending classes. They recognize this is a self-defeating cycle and decide to seek professional help. Based on the fundamental purpose of psychotherapy, which of the following best represents a primary goal for their treatment?

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