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Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Chapter Review

Therapists must be well-informed about which treatments may benefit clients and which treatments may generate adverse outcomes. This can be achieved by attending professional workshops and conferences, taking part in continuing education programs, engaging in peer consultation, and self-directed learning, i.e., reading professional journals and publications (Prout et al., 2022).

Empirically supported treatments (ESTs) are psychological treatments supported by scientific research. They have been tested in different experimental studies and are made known to clinicians through treatment manuals to help guide treatment in clinical practice. According to Prout et al. (2022), there is a significant distinction between efficacy and effectiveness in psychotherapy research. Efficacy signifies that the treatment has successfully treated a given condition in a carefully controlled experimental setting. On the other hand, effectiveness means that a treatment intervention has successfully treated a given condition in community or usual settings.

EBP and ESTs are used commonly to define psychotherapy. Nevertheless, EBP encourages the scientific examination of evidence alongside patient characteristics, preferences, and culture. Here, clinicians make treatment decisions by considering the client’s characteristics, context, and constellation of symptoms. On the other hand, ESTs mainly emphasize identifying what treatment interventions work for a given disorder (Prout et al., 2022).

Empirically Supported Treatments

Empirically Supported Treatments are treatment interventions that have been found to be effective for specific conditions. The APA Division 12 established a task force to develop criteria for evaluating psychotherapy. The criteria differentiated three stages of empirical support that correspond to treatment interventions that are well-established, probably efficacious, and experimental. For a treatment to be considered well-established, two or more well-designed studies performed by different investigators that prove the treatment’s efficacy are required (Prout et al., 2022). On the other hand, for a treatment to be probably efficacious, there must be at least two research studies proving the treatment’s efficacy or at least one study meeting the requirement for well-established treatment but not performed by different investigators. Over four single-case design studies are also required to prove that the treatment is probably efficacious. Scholars have not yet tested experimental treatments in research that meet the task force’s requirements.

Difference between Efficacy and Effectiveness

Efficacy means that the treatment intervention has successfully treated a given condition in a carefully controlled experimental setting. On the other hand, effectiveness means that a treatment intervention has successfully treated a given condition in community or usual settings.

Spotlight on Culture

The shift towards ESTs has awakened criticisms from psychologists. Some psychologists critique EST listing, claiming that the majority of research studies performed to back these treatments relied upon “predominantly White, middle-class, English-speaking women.” The authors of ESTs specifically highlighted the lack of research evidence on what treatment interventions are effective for ethnic minority groups. Still, they suggested that practitioners use ESTs when providing care to ethnic minority clients. Consequently, the APA 2006 Presidential Task Force of Evidence-Based Practice accepted that more research evidence should be integrated to ascertain what treatment interventions benefit these populations (Prout et al., 2022). Particularly, qualitative research that strives to explore individuals lengthily through open-ended interviews, focus groups, and observations is suitable for learning about what treatments benefit specific ethnic minority clients.

Difference between Integrative and Eclectic Approaches

An integrative approach indicates that a therapist combines different theories to guide treatment, as well as case conceptualization. On the other hand, the eclectic approach entails using different treatment techniques from different therapy approaches without considering the theories from which they were created.

References

Prout, T. A., Wadkins, M. J., & Tatianna Kufferath-Lin, P. (2022).  Essential interviewing and counseling skills: An integrated approach to practice (2nd ed.). Springer Publishing Company.