Psychoeduation

Question 1

Is the therapist-client relationship important for effecting change?

Answer 1

Yes!! When we use therapists the change is more powerful but cannot induce change on its own - other techniques are needed!

Question 2

Beckian vs Ellis therapeutic approach

Answer 2

• Beck - collaborative
• Ellis - expert, coach (warmth is not essential)

Question 3

Relationship competencies (Beckian approach)

Answer 3

• collaborative empiricism
• mutual agreement regarding (1) goals and (2) formulation
• client’s active involvement in therapy
• guided discovery (socratic, experiments)

Question 4

Role of therapist during CBT

Answer 4

• Shift roles based on the situation
• Reflective and insight-orientation
• Skills training (coach) - when needed
• Teach (expert) - psychoed
• Supportive and validating

Question 5

T-C relationship - cultural considerations

Answer 5

• Be aware of your own beliefs and perceptions
• Aware of blindspots
• Put greater effort/time into engagement (show respect, acknowledge difficulties, be sensitive)
• CBT translates well to different belief systems
• Be aware of different perceptions of therapy
• Aware of language/translation difficulties

Question 6

What are the barriers of psycho-ed?

Answer 6

• all receivers are biased - actively shape the information
• cognitive and emotional barriers
  e.g., your heart doesn’t react to statistics

Question 7

Psycho-ed principles and practice

Answer 7

• go from known to unknown
• bite-sized chunks
• verbal and visual information
• check understanding
• work through barriers
• do they find the info credible
• be aware of ‘yes’ response bias
• encourage discussion
• pay attention to nonverbal cues
• use analogies
• use behavioural experiments
• use homework tasks

Question 8

Psycho-ed: how do you overcome emotional barriers?

Answer 8

• experimental - knowledge through experiments is most useful
• identify beliefs and assumptions and then use therapeutic interventions to overcome
• pace and absorption of information slower!

Question 9

As part of psycho-ed, how do you examine beliefs about a diagnosis?

Answer 9

• what does the diagnosis mean to client?
• have they met someone else with diagnosis?
• prognostic implications (outcome and course)
• assumptions, AT’s and attributions
• clarify pre-diagnostic conceptualisations - what causes or maintains it

Question 10

Psycho-ed process

Answer 10

• prepare the client
• clear dissemination of information
• identification of barriers
• be empathic, collaborative, flexible, patient