Key Competencies in Brief Dynamic Psychotherapy

Jeffrey L. Binder, PhD, ABPP, is Clinical Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Vanderbilt University. Dr. Binder has served as the director of an outpatient community mental health clinic, helped to develop a private psychiatric hospital, and has had a private practice in psychotherapy. He has been actively involved in practicing and teaching brief psychotherapy since the early 1970s and has presented and published extensively on the topics of brief psychotherapy and psychotherapy training. The book that he coauthored with Hans H. Strupp, Psychotherapy in a New Key: A Guide to Time-Limited Dynamic Psychotherapy, is a classic in the area of brief dynamic treatment. Dr. Binder is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association.

• 1. The Key to Good Psychotherapy 2. Competency 1: The Use of Theoretical Models of Personality, Psychopathology, and Therapeutic Process to Guide the Conduct of Psychotherapy 3. Competency 2: Problem Formulation and Treatment Planning 4. Competency 3: Tracking the Issue That Is the Focus of Therapy 5. Competency 4: Planning What to Do and Carrying It Out—The Therapeutic Inquiry 6. Competency 4: Planning What to Do and Carrying It Out—Implementing Change 7. Competency 5: Relationship Management 8. Termination, with Karishma K. Patel 9. Training Epilogue

Don't let the title fool you--this is a book of great relevance to all psychotherapies regardless of length, theoretical orientation, or practitioner experience. While most books focus on specific theoretical approaches, specific disorders, or both, this is one of the few that highlights core therapeutic skills. Student readership should be extremely high for this book. I could very well see using it in my graduate-level course on brief therapy for both psychology interns and psychiatric residents, and I will recommend it to my colleagues who teach more general psychotherapy courses. The material is written without the use of jargon, demystifying the therapeutic dialogue in an accessible style that will be easily understood by students with minimal clinical experience.--Hanna Levenson, PhD, Levenson Institute for Training, San FranciscoA superb, innovative contribution to the literature on time-limited dynamic psychotherapy, and one that is destined to become a classic. At the core of this volume is the assertion that therapeutic expertise consists of the ability to improvise and respond spontaneously and flexibly to the demands of the specific context, and Binder does a brilliant job of spelling out what he terms 'core competencies,' or the generic performance skills possessed by expert therapists. In the process, he also does the field an important service by updating the time-limited approach he developed with Hans Strupp, drawing on both developments in contemporary psychoanalytic theory and important findings emerging from psychotherapy research. The writing is lucid and masterful and the thinking is seasoned and clinically mature. This book will be of interest to a broad readership, and will make a valuable text for graduate-level courses in brief dynamic therapy or basic clinical skills.--Jeremy D. Safran, PhD, Department of Psychology, New School UniversityThis volume offers an in-depth examination of the components of effective brief dynamic treatment. It is thoughtfully researched and well written. Its scope makes it ideal for either clinicians or researchers, whether they are just coming into the field or have many years of experience. The book will also be useful as a text in graduate programs teaching brief therapy or examining psychoanalytic treatments. A valuable contribution.--Simon H. Budman, PhD, Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical SchoolBinder’s book makes a substantial contribution to our understanding of expert psychotherapy practice. It is a rare privilege to so closely observe how a master clinician and supervisor works with his clients. Included are detailed and extraordinarily vibrant examples of brief dynamic therapy that both captivate and stimulate the reader. There are many unusual and excellent aspects to this book: it clarifies important psychodynamic concepts, includes supportive findings from cognitive science and therapy research, and provides supervisors and teachers with detailed illustrations on how to teach, learn, and apply higher-order therapeutic competencies across different therapeutic systems.--Jacques P. Barber, PhD, Center for Psychotherapy Research, Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine-