Professor: Jerome L. Short, Ph.D.
Office: David King Hall 2045
Phone: 703 993-1368 (Office)
E-Mail: jshort@gmu.edu
Web: mason.gmu.edu/~jshort
Office Hours: 1:00 - 2:00 PM, Tuesdays and Wednesdays

Welcome! This course will introduce you to the theory and practice of psychotherapy. You will have the opportunity to practice multiple intervention techniques through a self-management project and through role-play exercises with your classmates. I expect you to attend class regularly and to complete all reading assignments before each class. I will use class time for lectures, discussions, videos, and class demonstrations of psychotherapy techniques.

Requirements:

One exam. You will receive a take-home final exam on Wednesday, April 23 and it is due back to me on Wednesday, May 7 at 5:00 PM. The exam is worth 100 points.

Self-Management Project. You will assess a behavior of your own that you want to increase or decrease, engage in behavior change strategies, and write a final report in the form of a single participant scientific study. Your report needs to have an Abstract, Introduction, Method, Results, and Discussion sections. The paper should be a minimum of 10 pages with a minimum of 10 references. This project is worth 100 points and is due on Wednesday, March 26 during class time.

Four videotaped role-plays. You will practice the psychotherapy techniques in four videotaped role-plays with classmates for 20 to 30 minutes each. For each role-play, you need to also write a one-page progress note. The four role-plays are each worth 25 points each for a total of 100 points.

Grading: I will calculate your final grade on your point total.

A = 279 – 300 (93-100%) A- = 270 – 278 (90-92%)
B+ = 261 – 269 (87-89%) B = 240 – 260 (80-86%)
C = 210 – 239 (70-79%) F = 000 - 209 (0-69%)

1/22 Schemas for Psychotherapy

1/29 Humanistic Psychotherapy

Mahoney, M.J. (2000). Training future psychotherapists. In C.R. Snyder & R.E. Ingram (Eds.) Handbook of psychological change (pp. 727-735). New York: John Wiley & Sons.

Jennings, L., & Skovholt, T.M. (1999). The cognitive, emotional, and relational characteristics of master therapists. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 46(1), 3-11.

Orlinsky, D.E. (1999). The master therapist: Ideal character or clinical fiction? Journal of Counseling Psychology, 46(1), 12-15.

Todd, J., & Bohart, A.C. (1999). Foundations of clinical and counseling psychology (3rd edition). New York: Longman. Client-centered and other person-centered therapies (pp. 203-237).

2/5 Cognitive and Behavior Therapy

Bloom, B.L. (1997). Planned short-term psychotherapy. Boston: Allyn & Bacon. Beck's Cognitive Restructuring Therapy (pp. 135-144).

Todd, J., & Bohart, A.C. (1999). Foundations of clinical and counseling psychology (3rd edition). New York: Longman. Behavioral approaches to therapy (pp. 267-305).

*Intake/Humanistic Therapy Tape due*

2/12 Child and Parent Psychotherapy

Kazdin, A.E., & Weisz, J.R. (1998). Identifying and developing empirically supported child and adolescent treatments. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 66(1), 19-36.

Roberts, M.C., Vernberg, E.M., & Jackson, Y. (2000). Psychotherapy with children and families. In C.R. Snyder & R.E. Ingram (Eds.) Handbook of psychological change (pp. 500-519. New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

2/19 Interpersonal Psychotherapy

Bloom, B.L. (1997). Planned short-term psychotherapy. Boston: Allyn & Bacon. Klerman's Interpersonal Psychotherapy (pp. 100-107).

*Behavior Therapy Tape due*

2/26 Adult Psychotherapy

DeRubeis, R.J., & Crits-Christoph, P. (1998). Empirically supported individual and group psychological treatments for adult mental disorders. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 66(1), 37-52.

Compas, B.E., Haaga, D.A., Keefe, F.J., Leitenberg, H., Williams, D.A. (1998). Sampling of empirically supported psychological treatments from health psychology: Smoking, chronic pain, cancer, and bulimia nervosa. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 66(1), 89-112.

3/5 Psychodynamic Psychotherapy

Bloom, B.L. (1997). Planned short-term psychotherapy. Boston: Allyn & Bacon. Davanloo's Intensive Short-Term Dynamic Psychotherapy (pp. 36-44).

*Cognitive Psychotherapy Tape due*

3/12 *Spring Break* No class

3/19 Therapist Factors

Teyber, E., & McClure, F. (2000). Therapist variables. In C.R. Snyder & R.E. Ingram (Eds.), Handbook of psychological change (pp. 62-87). New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Snyder, C.R., McDermott, D.S., Leibowitz, R.Q., & Cheavens, J. (2000). The roles of female clinical psychologists in changing the field of psychotherapy. In C.R. Snyder & R.E. Ingram (Eds.), Handbook of psychological change (pp. 640-659). New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

3/26 Solution-Focused Psychotherapy

Bloom, B.L. (1997). Planned short-term psychotherapy. Boston: Allyn & Bacon. DeShazer's Solution-Based Brief Therapy (pp. 169-180).

*Interpersonal Psychotherapy tape due*

*Self-Management Project due*

4/2 Client Factors

Petry, N.M., Tennen, H., & Affleck, G. (2000). Stalking the elusive client variable in psychotherapy research. In C.R. Snyder & R.E. Ingram (Eds.), Handbook of psychological change (pp. 88-108.). New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Beutler, L.E. (2000). Empirically based decision making in clinical practice. Prevention & Treatment, 3(27), 1-17.

4/9 Couple Psychotherapy

Young, M.E., & Long, L.L. (1998). Counseling and therapy for couples. Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole. Treating communication problems: Issues and skills (pp. 137-160).

4/16 Family Psychotherapy

Baucom, D.H., Shoham, V., Mueser, K.T., Daiuto, A.D., & Stickle, T.R. (1998). Empirically supported couple and family interventions for marital distress and adult mental health problems. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 66(1), 53-88.

Piercy, F.P., Sprenkle, D.H., Wetchler, J.L., & Associates. (1996). Family therapy sourcebook (2nd ed.). New York: Guilford Press. Structural, strategic, and systemic family therapies (pp. 50-78).

4/23 Cultural Diversity and Psychotherapy

Gray-Little, B., & Kaplan, D. (2000). Race and ethnicity in psychotherapy research. In C.R. Snyder & R.E. Ingram (Eds.), Handbook of psychological change (pp. 591-613). New York: John Wiley & Sons.

*Receive Exam*

4/30 Effectiveness of Psychotherapy

Kopta, S.M., Lueger, R.J., Saunders, S.M., & Howard, K.I. (1999). Individual psychotherapy outcome and process research: Challenges leading to greater turmoil or a positive transition? Annual Review of Psychology, 50, 441-469.

Seligman, M.E.P. (1995). The effectiveness of psychotherapy: The Consumer Reports study. American Psychologist, 51, 965-974.

5/7 * Final Exam due*

Self-Management Project. The steps for the project are:

1) Select an easily observable behavior that occurs with sufficient frequency to develop a usable record, and one that is not embarrassing for you. Work out an adequate operational definition to measure the behavior.

2) Develop a structured record form to record the behavior on a daily basis. Record frequency and quality of the behavior and the stimulus conditions (including identifiable antecedents and consequences) for 14 days. Stimulus conditions should include: date, day of week, time of day, duration, location, quality, and personal thoughts and feelings.

3) Briefly discuss in class your designated behavior and your baseline data and submit a copy to me for feedback by February 12.

4) Formulate answers to the question of what is maintaining the behavior at its current inappropriate level.

5) Plan and implement systematic behavior change procedures. Keep daily records of the behavior throughout an additional 14 days.

6) Write a final report in the form of a single-participant scientific study that one might find in an issue of Behavior Modification. The report should include Introduction, Method, Results, and Discussion sections with a minimum of five references from psychology journals. Your report can range from 10 to 15 pages and should include a frequency graph and copies of your raw data at the end of your report.

7) Some behaviors you might consider are: physical exercise, eating habits, assertive expressions, and complimenting others.