mistic thoughts so the client can become aware of the ways they develop their thinking patterns. The therapist can also coach the client by rehearsing skills that relieve and prevent depression (relaxation techniques). They can help clients to also rehearse mentally to meet important challenges or conquer fears. An analysis of the evidence of the efficacy of CBT This article states that it is difficult to judge the efficacy of CBT because a double-blind experiment (where no one knows who has taken the sugar pill) is impossible. The author of the article suggest that the improvements in CBT (as well as other therapies) are the result of “prolonged attention of an authoritative person who restores the patient’s morale with comforting explanations that helps the client make sense of his troubles (p. 6).” The author even took it one step further and said that research conducted with carefully selected clients and highly trained therapists cannot give accurate results because the same procedures cannot be replicated under ordinary conditions. This author also calls for a better understanding of the causes and treatments of mood disorders. He said that there are currently four large research studies that are examining the patient’s overall improvement in their quality of life rather than the alleviating of symptoms alone.How this chapter makes a unique contribution is that it makes a professional begin to question if the interventions they are employing will in fact enable their client to achieve a satisfactory outcome. In other words, a therapist by reading this article begins to wonder if the interventions they employ “really work”. In our profession, we are always asking our clients questions. The article seems to be saying that it now time for this profession to begin to questions itself: do the positive results that psychotherapies are claiming really work?.Compare/contrast This article dif...
