Research For The Psychotherapist

While empirical, scientific research has much to offer to the practice-oriented therapist in training, it is often difficult to effectively engage the trainee, beginning practitioner, or graduate student in a subject area that can often glaze over the eyes of a reader focused on practical work. Most books about psychotherapy focus either on the process of gathering, analyzing, presenting, and discussing research results, or on conducting clinical work. What most of these texts lack is an engaging, accessible guide on how to incorporate research into practice. Research for the Psychotherapist: From Science to Practice fills that niche with an approach that bridges the gap between research and practice, presenting concise chapters that distill research findings and clearly apply them to practical issues. Jay Lebow is an accomplished practitioner and researcher in the fields of marriage and family therapy and integrative psychotherapy. In this book, he offers a focused volume that covers a range of topics. This volume should appeal to psychotherapists and students looking for an accessible, jargon-free guide to utilizing research in practical settings.

In this book bestselling author John McLeod examines the multiple ways in which research can be used to inform and enhance counselling practice. The author discusses how research impacts on policy and practice, covering research knowledge, values, research awareness and skills. Further chapters cover: Using research to understand the therapy process and outcomes Using research to make sense of other lives Using client feedback to enhance practice Using research to build professional networks and effective organisations. The book can be used throughout training on counselling, psychotherapy and counselling psychology courses, to support the development of professional competencies and personal development. It will also be valuable reading for both practitioners and researchers.

This textbook provides a guide to the development of a rigorous and creative research-supported practice for students, practitioners, and researchers in counselling and psychotherapy. With an emphasis on critical thinking and “research mindedness”, it introduces practical research skills and links them to self-awareness and critical reflection. Learning how to creatively and effectively use oneself in the treatment process is an essential component in therapy training and this level of self-awareness has long been a neglected area in research – until now. With examples ranging from private therapeutic practice to psychiatric related research, each chapter combines ‘how-to-do-it’ advice with illustrative real-life examples. The authors outline the use of a broad range of research methods, embracing Arts- as well as RCT-based research, and covering qualitative, quantitative, pluralistic and mixed methods approaches. Whether you are engaging with research for the first time or already developing your own research projects, if you are a student at diploma level or taking a Postgraduate research course for counsellors, psychotherapists and counselling psychotherapists, this is essential reading for anyone looking for a book that combines self-awareness with analytical and practical skills.

How Psychotherapists Live is a landmark study of thousands of mental health practitioners worldwide. It significantly advances our understanding of psychotherapists and counselors by focusing on their individual qualities and lives, revealing the many ways they differ as persons and how those differences shape their experiences of therapeutic work. Topics include the therapist's personal self, private life, individual beliefs, quality of life, childhood family experiences, and personal psychotherapy. Based on thirty years of research, the book is written to interest clinical practitioners while also providing researchers with a rich array of data. Clinical psychologists, psychiatrists, clinical social workers, and counselors can easily compare their own experiences with the thousands of therapists in the study by reflecting on typologies constructed from research findings. The book will also be a valuable resource for researchers studying the sources of variation in therapists' effectiveness.

Introducing the basic principles of research theory and practice, this book is the ideal starter text for any counselling trainee or practitioner learning about the research process for the first time. Structured around common training topics, the book: - Explains why you need to do research at all: what it is, why it's important and its historical and philosophical context - Guides you through the confusing mass of research literature - Covers the ins and outs of actually doing research: practical and ethical issues - Helps you get the most out of research - how to evaluate the outcomes and use research to investigate the process of therapy. Written in a language familiar to first-year trainees and using a range of features to enhance learning, this accessible introduction will equip both trainees and qualified therapists with the essential nuts and bolts to understand research. John McLeod is Emeritus Professor of Counselling at the University of Abertay Dundee and adjunct Professor at the University of Oslo, Norway.

Research is a vital and often daunting component of many counselling and psychotherapy courses. As well as completing their own research projects, trainees across modalities must understand the research in the field – what it tells them and how to do it. Breaking down this seemingly mountainous task into easy to swallow pieces, this book will navigate your students through each stage of the research process, from choosing a research question, through the pros and cons of different methods, to data analysis and writing up their findings. Written by leading contributors from the field including John McLeod, Mick Cooper and Tim Bond, each chapter features points for reflection, engaging activities and suggestions for further reading, helping students to engage with all aspects of research. An original graphic narrative runs throughout the book, bringing this complex topic to life in a unique way. Whether embarking on research for the first time or already a little familiar with research and research methods, this unique guide is something counselling and psychotherapy students will turn to continually throughout their research projects.

Research in Psychotherapy is a comprehensive synthesis and assessment of the psychotherapeutic research literature for the use of both researchers and those in clinical practice. It is designed as a general reference work, an instruction guide, and a source of information about specific aspects and problems of research. The book consists of three parts. Part 1 discusses principles and methods of research as they are applied to psychotherapy. It provides general background material and principles to help non-researchers appreciate some of the important problems that are encountered. In Part 2, existing research on the effects of psychotherapy and the determinants and correlates of outcome are clustered and reviewed. Chapters 4 to 7 are concerned strictly with a review and appraisal of controlled studies that were designed to evaluate the effects of psychotherapy. Chapters 8 to 13 deal with a large body of research on various factors associated with therapeutic outcome--method, style, and technique variables; patient, therapist, and time variables. Part 3 is concerned with research on aspects of the therapeutic process and on the effect of many of these same variables on the therapeutic interchange as distinct from the outcome of therapy. Also discussed is research on various therapeutic phenomena and conditions about which so much has been written and so little really known. Research in Psychotherapy was written in the conviction that clinical practice should be influenced by research and that rigorous research that meets acceptable experimental standards can be done on the field of psychotherapy.

An accessible, practical introduction to carrying out qualitative research in psychotherapy and counselling for practitioners who want or who are required to contribute to the profession’s evidence base. Gives clear guidance on how to set up and conduct small scale research that is based in clinical practice Assumes no prior knowledge of qualitative research and is aimed specifically at psychotherapists Recognises development of the evidence base for psychotherapy through qualitative research as a key objective for practitioners