PSYUX2222 Week 4 2025-

Lecture Outline

1. Evidence-based practice in health & wellbeing, including examples from counseling and psychotherapy.

2. Various approaches to psychotherapy.

Evidence-Based Practice (EBP)

• Definition: EBP combines the best available research evidence with clinical expertise and patient values to make informed decisions about care.

• Importance:

  • Ensures effectiveness of interventions.

  • Promotes ethical practice by respecting the rights and values of clients.

  • Improves client outcomes through informed decision-making.

  • Relates to the integrity and accountability of practitioners.

Ethical Foundations of EBP

• Key ethical principles involved in EBP:

  1. Respect for persons: recognizing individual dignity and autonomy.

  2. Beneficence: promoting the welfare of clients.

  3. Justice: ensuring fairness and equality in care.

  4. Fidelity and responsibility: maintaining trust and accountability in professional relationships.

Challenges to EBP Implementation

• Issues that hinder EBP application in health fields:

  • Reliance on personal experience over latest research.

  • Resistance to adapting practices based on new evidence.

  • Barriers to accessing quality evidence, including limited resources and time constraints.

Levels of Evidence

• Various types of studies, ranked by robustness:

  1. Systematic Reviews: Comprehensive literature reviews of multiple studies.

  2. Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs): Considered the gold standard in clinical research.

  3. Cohort Studies: Longitudinal observational studies that follow a group over time.

  4. Case-Control Studies: Compare those with an outcome to those without to identify risk factors.

  5. Case Series/Reports: Detailed histories of single cases without control groups.

  6. Expert Opinions: Often biased, but can be useful as supplementary evidence.

Psychotherapy Approaches

• Common psychotherapy modalities include:

  • Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

  • Humanistic Therapy

  • Psychodynamic Therapy

  • Behavioral Therapy

  • Systemic Therapy

  • Existential Therapy

  • Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

1. Core Principles:

   • Focuses on the relationship between thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.

   • Helps clients identify and challenge cognitive distortions.

2. Techniques:

   • Cognitive Restructuring: Identifying and changing negative thought patterns.

   • Behavioral Activation: Encourages engagement in activities to improve mood.

   • Exposure Therapy: Gradual confrontation of fears to reduce anxiety.

3. CBT Model:

   • Activating Event -> Beliefs -> Consequences (emotional/behavioral).

4. Common Cognitive Distortions to Address:

   • All-or-nothing thinking

   • Catastrophizing

   • Overgeneralization

Humanistic Approaches

• Focus on personal growth and self-actualization:

  • Key Figures: Carl Rogers, Abraham Maslow.

  • Emphasizes unconditional positive regard, empathy, and congruence in therapeutic relationships.

Psychodynamic Therapy

• Explores unconscious conflicts rooted in childhood that manifest as anxiety or distress:

  • Techniques include free association, dream analysis, and transference exploration.

Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

• Systematic Review: Evaluates and synthesizes research to answer specific clinical questions.

• Meta-Analysis: Combines data from multiple studies to derive overall statistics and effects.

Conclusion

• EBP is integral in ensuring that psychotherapeutic practices are effective and ethical. Adapting and updating approaches based on new research evidence enhances client care and outcomes.

References

• This section cites key studies and foundational texts in psychotherapy and EBP methodology, ensuring a solid theoretical and empirical basis for each discussed approach.