Basic Principles And Techniques In Short Term Dynamic Psychotherapy

Traditionally, psychoanalytic treatment has been a lengthy endeavour, requiring a long-term commitment from patient and analyst, as well as vast financial resources. More recently, short-term approaches to psychoanalytic treatment have proliferated. One of the most well-known and thoroughly studied is the groundbreaking method of Intensive Short-term Dynamic Psychotherapy, developed by Dr. Habib Davanloo. Having trained directly with Dr. Davenloo, the author has written a clear, concise outline of the method that has come to be regarded as a classic in the field. The book is organised in a systematic fashion, analogous to the process of therapy itself, from initial contact through to termination and follow-up. Detailed clinical examples are presented throughout the text to illustrate how theory is translated into techniques of unparalleled power and effectiveness.

Argues that with suitable selection criteria and specified therapeutic techniques, short-term dynamic psychotherapy is both feasible and valuable. Contributors address the question of suitablity. In commenting on each others selection criteria, they reveal differences amongst themselves.

xii the evaluations, techniques, and outcome have helped to document the efficacy of their therapeutic modalities. In addition, many good books and articles have been published introducing new concepts, such as the importance of systematic case studies and personality styles by Horowitz, a variety of brief therapies by Budman, and an integrating model of time-limited psychotherapy by Strupp, to men tion only a few. The investigation of the efficacy of short-term anxiety-provoking psychotherapy (STAPP), which is the subject of this book, has con tinued during the last eight years, particularly in reference to pa tients with unresolved Oedipal conflicts. The chapter on outcome has therefore been expanded to include some of our findings. Cautious attempts have also been made to utilize focal and in novating techniques for the treatment of individuals with borderline as well as compulsive personalities. In this second edition an effort has been made to present the specific technical factors which seem to have a therapeutic effect, such as problem solving, self-understanding, and new learning, and which are utilized by the patients to solve new emotional conflicts long after the end of their treatment. Chapters on the treatment of elderly patients and the handling of individuals with physical symptomatology have been added; a history of the extensive treatment of a male patient has been pre sented to complement the discussion of the therapy of my female patient which appears in Appendix I.

Short-term psychotherapy, although brief, is not ephemeral. In the decade or two of its existence, it has grown into a sturdy tree, and a sign of its maturity is the fact that it is now the subject of an increasing number of overview articles summarizing its literature and findings. Yet it remains a young and vigorous discipline. Its pioneers have not been elevated to a pantheon of venerable but mute immortals; on the contrary, they are to be found at the forefront of the field, actively contributing to the development of its theory and practice. This volume is ample testimony to their continued creativity. Dr. Sifneos has lectured and written extensively about short-term anxiety-provoking psychotherapy (STAPP). Based on psychoanalytic principles, STAPP aims to resolve pathological psychic conflicts and help those suffering from them to learn new ways of being in their most intimate relationships. It does so by actively focusing the patients' sights on their Oedipal problems, and its effectiveness (given a proper selection of subjects by specific criteria) has been amply documented in controlled clinical studies.

Brevity: rigidity and length of time frame - Treatment focus: the patient in the outside World - Therapist activity: focusing on (or away from) the unconscious - Patient selection: in sickness and in health - Brevity revisited: when less means more.

This book is an easy-to-use guide to short-term psychodynamic psychotherapy for early career practitioners and students of mental health. Written by an expert psychiatric educator, this book is meticulously designed to emphasize clarity and succinctness to facilitate quality training and practice. Developed in a reader-friendly voice, the text begins by introducing the theoretical underpinnings of psychodynamic psychotherapy. Topics include the principles of attachment theory, the dual system theory of emotion processing, decision theory, choice point analysis and a critical review of the research literature. The book then shifts its focus to a description in a manualized format of the objectives and tasks of each phase of therapy within the framework of the engagement, emotion-processing and termination phases. The book concludes with a chapter on psychodynamically informed clinical practice for non-psychotherapists. Short-Term Psychodynamic Psychotherapy is the ultimate tool for the education of students, residents, trainees, and fellows in psychiatry, psychology, counseling, social work, and all other clinical mental health professions.