Responds to Mahoney and Lyddon's review of constructivism in previous article by raising questions about how the conceptual framework of constructivism can be further examined or challenged scientifically, how a constructivist orientation can be used in clinical and counseling work, and what role behavior plays. (NB)

Criticizes Mahoney and Lyddon's review of constructivism in previous article by asserting that it contains too little information about various strategies of cognitive counseling and psychotherapy. Discusses problems and ambiguities with Mahoney and Lyddon's view of history of cognitive psychology and their presentation of constructivist…

Discusses use of hypnosis in traditional psychoanalysis, compares use of hypnosis in behavior modification therapy versus psychoanalysis, and presents a hypno-behavioral model which combines both approaches using hypnosis as the medium. (Author/NB)

Administered questionnaire to 40 psychodrama participants and 42 controls with no psychotherapy experience to assess which specific events they would find helpful in psychotherapy. Psychodrama participants perceived emotional abreaction and cognitive insight most helpful while controls considered nonspecific healing aids most helpful. Suggests…

Proposes use of dreamwork to evoke historical patterns or transgenerational themes. Describes new variant of dreamwork which combines aspects of both gestalt and family systems therapies. Implications of therapeutic dramatization for couple therapy are suggested. Examples are included. (Author/NB)

Evaluated the effectiveness of paradoxical interventions in psychotherapy, in a meta-analysis of 12 data sets. Found that paradoxical interventions were as effective as, but not more effective than, the typical treatment made except for one month after treatment termination and with more severe cases, when it showed relatively greater…

The demand for therapy has increased 400 percent in the past three decades, noting that about 250 different therapies treat the one syndrome shared by all patients, namely, demoralization. Whether such therapies really work is the subject of this report. (JN)

The paper discusses a clinical trial of pretreatment and treatment strategies to enhance the effectiveness of short-term groups. Pretreatment strategies included preparing patients and increasing the perceived authority of the therapists. Treatment strategies include delineation of a specific treatment focus and a directive approach by the…

After a concise overview of the technical characteristics that define brief psychotherapy, the current use and misuse of these methods in clinical research on the outcome and process of treatment is examined. Suggests that brief psychotherapy methods possess unique technical advantages to the researcher. (Author/BL)

Examined generalizability of treatment studies by comparing solicited and nonsolicited patient groups treated or studied in clinical settings. Findings suggest it may be possible to generate comparable samples in terms of pretreatment symptomatology, however, data are too limited to permit conclusions regarding generalizability of treatment…

Reviews the literature regarding client motivation and client references. Offers recommendations for designing a program to increase motivation for psychotherapy in institutionalized adolescents, based on pretherapy and token economics. (JAC)

Studied 30 outpatient psychotherapy clients and assessed their relative change of status at termination and six months posttreatment. The vast majority of clients indicated improvement. Socioeconomic status, age, total psychotherapy sessions, initial neuroticism, and initial extraversion were identified as predictors of positive change in status.…

Examines whether cognitive behavior therapy represents a legitimate or premature set of therapeutic techniques. Explores the emergent integration of cognitive and behavioral approaches to psychotherapy both historically and conceptually. Reviews sources for the trend to include cognition in behavior therapy and analyzes the cognitive-behavioristic…

Explores feminist therapy within the framework of the social-psychological influence process and discusses outcomes of feminist therapy in the following areas: (1) androgyny; (2) body image; (3) relationships; and (4) work. Presents some cautions about the influence process. (Author/JAC)

Discusses religious and family loyalties and their relationship to behavioral motivation. Focuses on the significance of religious loyalities for the clinician as well as the client, and points out the need to demystify religion and religious experience. (JAC)