Psychotherapy Change Measures

This book provides researchers, clinicians, and students with a useful overview of measuring client change in clinical practice. It reviews the history, conceptual foundations, and current status of trait- and state-based assessment models and approaches, exploring their strengths and limitations for measuring change across therapy sessions. Meier shows how to effectively interpret and use measurement and assessment data to improve treatment evaluation and clinical care. A series of exercises guides the reader to gather information about particular tests and evaluate their suitability for intended testing purposes.

In How and Why People Change Dr. Ian M. Evans revisits many of the fundamental principles of behavior change in order to deconstruct what it is we try to achieve in psychological therapies. All of the conditions that impact people when seeking therapy are brought together in one cohesive framework: assumptions of learning, motivation, approach and avoidance, barriers to change, personality dynamics, and the way that individual behavioral repertoires are inter-related.

Psychotherapy researchers have traditionally focused on therapy outcomes outside of the therapeutic setting. This presents the difficulty of correlating outcomes with what goes on in the clinical setting, a nearly impossible task. It is no surprise, consequently, that therapists have seen such research as largely irrelevant to clinical practice.

This book sets in context the role of outcome measurement research - taking you step-by-step through the research process and beyond to consider the wider professional and ethical issues involved. This book will provide you with everything you need to know and more, helping you develop the skills and knowledge you need to become a successful research-informed practitioner. Written for trainees and counselling and psychotherapy practitioners, this book: - Provides you with a brief overview and history of research and measurement in mental health contexts. - Sets out a framework for understanding the core features of outcome measures and their scope. - Takes you step-to-step through the process of implementing a SMART outcome evaluation. - Addresses the benefits and limitations of outcome measures research for the individual client, practitioner and service provider. Packed full of case studies, activities and tools for real-life practice, this book throws a life belt to all counselling and psychotherapy trainees and practitioners looking to make the best start in their research-informed career. Chris Evans is Visiting Professor at the University of UDLA, Ecuador and an Honorary Professor at the University of Roehampton. Jo-anne Carlyle is Director of PSYCTC.com