How and why are some therapists better than others? : understanding therapist effects

"Some therapists are more effective than others, that much is clear; why they are more effective is less clear. Editors Louis Castonguay and Clara Hill have gathered a panel of expert researchers and practitioners from diverse theoretical backgrounds to answer this complicated question. Synthesizing the rich literature on therapist effects in this comprehensive volume, they explore how various effects can help or hinder clients in therapy. They then propose practical strategies that mental health practitioners can use to improve their own effectiveness. Castonguay, Hill, and their contributors first lay the empirical foundations for understanding therapist effects and why they are important. They also acknowledge the massive variability that exists among therapists and the complexities of studying therapist effects. Drawing from this fundamental knowledge, they then carefully examine specific therapist characteristics, attitudes, and skills that are relevant in any therapeutic setting. Topics include: therapists' responsiveness, presence, attachment, and technical interventions; cultural factors; negative emotions; humor; and creativity. Exciting new studies about therapist effects in the treatment of specific disorders, including depression and generalized anxiety, are also presented. The closing chapters translate the book's general themes and takeaways into broader applications for research, intervention, training, and policy, including the role of routine outcome monitoring."--Preface. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved). Read more... I. Empirical foundations -- II. Conceptual contributions -- III. Empirical contributions -- IV. Implications and conclusions. Preface -- Introduction -- Empirical foundations -- Therapist effects, effective therapists, and the law of variability / Michael Barkham, Wolfgang Lutz, Michael J. Lambert, and David Saxon -- What characterizes effective therapists? / Bruce E. Wampold, Scott Baldwin, Martin Grosse Holtforth, and Zac E. Imel -- Who works for whom and why? integrating therapist effects analysis into psychotherapy outcome and process research / Michael J. Constantino, James F. Boswell, Alice E. Coyne, David R. Kraus, and Louis G. Castonguay -- Conceptual contributions -- Appropriate responsiveness as a contribution to therapist effects / William B. Stiles and Adam O. Horvath -- Therapist presence, absence, and extraordinary presence / Jeffrey A. Hayes and Maria Vinca -- Inner experience and the good psychotherapist / Charles J. Gelso and Andres E. Perez-Rojas -- The role of therapist́s attachment for process and outcome of psychotherapy / Bernhard M. Strauss and Katia Petrowski -- The role of therapist skills in therapist effectiveness / Timothy Anderson and Clara E. Hill -- The contributions of client culture to differential therapist effectiveness / Jeffrey A. Hayes Jesse J. Owen, and Helene A. Nissen-Lie -- Therapist negative reactions : how to transform toxic experiences / Abraham W. Wolf, Marvin R. Goldfried, and J. Christopher Muran -- Professional expertise in psychotherapy / Franz Caspar -- Gaining therapeutic wisdom and skills from creative others (writers, actors, musicians, and dancers) / Barry A. Farber -- Empirical contributions -- Effective therapists in psychodynamic therapy for depression : what interventions are used and how? / Nadia Kuprian, Harold Chui, and Jacques P. Barber -- Effective and less effective therapists for generalized anxiety disorders : are they conducting therapy the same way? / Soo J. Youn, Louis G. Castonguay, Hanjoo Kim, Henry Xiao, Andrew A. McAleavey, Michelle G. Newman, and Jeremy D. Safran -- Something to laugh about : humor as a characteristic of effective therapists / Sarah Knox, Meghan Butler, Dakota J. Kaiser, Graham Knowlton, and Clara E. Hill -- Implications and conclusions -- The implications of therapist effects for routine practice, policy, and training / James F. Boswell, David Kraus, Michael J. Constantino, Matteo Bugatti, and Louis G. Castonguay -- Therapist effects : integration and conclusions / Clara E. Hill and Louis G. Castonguay -- Index -- About the editors.50 Some therapists are more effective than others, that much is clear;why they are more effective is less clear. Editors LouisCastonguay and Clara Hill have gathered a panel of expertresearchers and practitioners from diverse theoretical backgroundsto answer this complicated question. Synthesizing the richliterature on therapist effects in this comprehensive volume, theyexplore how various effects can help or hinder clients in therapy.They then propose practical strategies that mental healthpractitioners can use to improve their own effectiveness.Castonguay, Hill, and their contributors first lay the empiricalfoundations for understanding therapist effects and why they areimportant. They also acknowledge the massive variability thatexists among therapists and the complexities of studying therapisteffects. Drawing from this fundamental knowledge, they thencarefully examine specific therapist characteristics, attitudes,and skills that are relevant in any therapeutic setting. Topicsinclude therapists' responsiveness, presence, attachment, andtechnical interventions; cultural factors; negative emotions;humor; and creativity. Exciting new studies about therapist effectsin the treatment of specific disorders, including depression andgeneralized anxiety, are also presented. The closing chapterstranslate the book's general themes and takeaways into broaderapplications for research, intervention, training, and policy,including the role of routine outcome monitoring. Some therapistsare more effective than others, that much is clear; whythey are more effective is less clear. To answer this question,Louis Castonguay and Clara Hill compiled this comprehensive guidethat brings together expert scholars and clinicians from a varietyof theoretical backgrounds. They explore the empirical foundationsof therapist effects as a broad concept and propose practicalstrategies to help mental health practitioners become moreeffective. Chapters also closely examine specific therapistcharacteristics, skills, and attitudes that are relevant to allclinical contexts, including therapeutic presence, technicalinterventions, cultural competence, reactions to negative emotions,and humor Some therapists are more effective than others, that much is clear; why they are more effective is less clear. This book identifies which characteristics make therapists more or less effective in their work and proposes guidelines to improve their effectiveness. Editors Louis Castonguay and Clara Hill have gathered a panel of expert researchers and practitioners from diverse theoretical backgrounds to answer this complicated question. Synthesizing the rich literature on therapist effects in this comprehensive volume, they explore how various effects can help or hinder clients in therapy. They then propose practical strategies that mental health practitioners can use to improve their own effectiveness. Castonguay, Hill, and their contributors first lay the empirical foundations for understanding therapist effects and why they are important. They also acknowledge the massive variability that exists among therapists and the complexities of studying therapist effects. Drawing from this fundamental knowledge, they then carefully examine specific therapist characteristics, attitudes, and skills that are relevant in any therapeutic setting. Topics include therapists'responsiveness, presence, attachment, and technical interventions; cultural factors; negative emotions; humor; and creativity. Exciting new studies about therapist effects in the treatment of specific disorders, including depression and generalized anxiety, are also presented. The closing chapters translate the book's general themes and takeaways into broader applications for research, intervention, training, and policy, including the role of routine outcome monitoring. Some therapists are more effective than others, that much is clear; why they are more effective is less clear. This book identifies which characteristics make therapists more or less effective in their work and proposes guidelines to improve their effectiveness. Editors Louis Castonguay and Clara Hill have gathered a panel of expert researchers and practitioners from diverse theoretical backgrounds to answer this complicated question. Synthesizing the rich literature on therapist effects in this comprehensive volume, they explore how various effects can help or hinder clients in therapy. They then propose practical strategies that mental health practitioners can use to improve their own effectiveness. Castonguay, Hill, and their contributors first lay the empirical foundations for understanding therapist effects and why they are important. They also acknowledge the massive variability that exists among therapists and the complexities of studying therapist effects. Drawing from this fundamental knowledge, they then carefully examine specific therapist characteristics, attitudes, and skills that are relevant in any therapeutic setting. Topics include therapists responsiveness, presence, attachment, and technical interventions; cultural factors; negative emotions; humor; and creativity. Exciting new studies about therapist effects in the treatment of specific disorders, including depression and generalized anxiety, are also presented. The closing chapters translate the books general themes and takeaways into broader applications for research, intervention, training, and policy, including the role of routine outcome monitoring.