Psychotherapy

For the academic journal, see Psychotherapy (journal).
"Therapy session" redirects here. For the music albums, see Therapy Session and Therapy Sessions.

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Psychotherapy
SpecialtyPsychology, psychiatry
MeSHD011613

Psychotherapy (also psychological therapy, talk therapy, or talking therapy) is the use of psychological methods, particularly when based on regular personal interaction, to help a person change behavior, increase happiness, and overcome problems. Psychotherapy aims to improve an individual's well-being and mental health, to resolve or mitigate troublesome behaviors, beliefs, compulsions, thoughts, or emotions, and to improve relationships and social skills.[1] Numerous types of psychotherapy have been designed either for individual adults, families, or children and adolescents. Certain types of psychotherapy are considered evidence-based for treating some diagnosed mental disorders; other types have been criticized as pseudoscience.[2]

There are hundreds of psychotherapy techniques, some being minor variations; others are based on very different conceptions of psychology.[3] Most involve one-to-one sessions, between the client and therapist, but some are conducted with groups,[4] including families.

Psychotherapists may be mental health professionals such as psychiatrists, psychologists, mental health nurses, clinical social workers, marriage and family therapists, or professional counselors. Psychotherapists may also come from a variety of other backgrounds, and depending on the jurisdiction may be legally regulated, voluntarily regulated or unregulated (and the term itself may be protected or not).

  1. ^ "What is Psychotherapy?". www.psychiatry.org. Retrieved 12 March 2022.
  2. ^ Hupp, Stephen; Santa Maria, Cara L., eds. (2023). Pseudoscience in Therapy: A Skeptical Field Guide. Cambridge, UK; New York: Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/9781009000611. ISBN 9781009005104. OCLC 1346351849. For example, Thought Field Therapy has been called a pseudoscience: Lilienfeld, Scott O. (December 2015). "Introduction to special section on pseudoscience in psychiatry". The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry. 60 (12): 531–533. doi:10.1177/070674371506001202. PMC 4679160. PMID 26720820. Although the boundaries separating pseudoscience from science are fuzzy, pseudosciences are characterized by several warning signs—fallible but useful indicators that distinguish them from most scientific disciplines. ... In contrast to most accepted medical interventions, which are prescribed for a circumscribed number of conditions, many pseudoscientific techniques lack boundary conditions of application. For example, some proponents of Thought Field Therapy, an intervention that purports to correct imbalances in unobservable energy fields, using specified bodily tapping algorithms, maintain that it can be used to treat virtually any psychological condition, and that it is helpful not only for adults but also for children, dogs, and horses. See also: Lee, Catherine M.; Hunsley, John (December 2015). "Evidence-based practice: separating science from pseudoscience". The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry. 60 (12): 534–540. doi:10.1177/070674371506001203. PMC 4679161. PMID 26720821. TFT, a treatment applied to mood, anxiety, and trauma-related disorders, is a prime example of practice founded on pseudoscience.
  3. ^ McAleavey, Andrew A.; Castonguay, Louis G. (2015). "The Process of Change in Psychotherapy: Common and Unique Factors". In Gelo, Omar C. G.; Pritz, Alfred; Rieken, Bernd (eds.). Psychotherapy Research. Vienna; New York: Springer-Verlag. pp. 293–310 (293). doi:10.1007/978-3-7091-1382-0_15. ISBN 9783709113813. OCLC 899738605. Though there are hundreds if not thousands of different kinds of psychotherapy, in many ways some are quite similar—they share some common factors.
  4. ^ Jeremy Schwartz (14 July 2017). "5 Reasons to Consider Group Therapy". US News. Archived from the original on 22 July 2017.