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Coronavirus outbreak created diverse challenges for mental health services in general and to psychotherapy in particular. One of the most prominent of these is the move from delivering psychotherapy in face to face sessions to telephone or internet-based platforms. While this is a challenge to all psychotherapies, this paper examines specific considerations that should be taken into account when doing recovery-oriented integrative psychotherapy with persons with schizophrenia. Based on our clinical experiences conducting trials of psychotherapy with people with schizophrenia in Israel and in the United States, we describe several changes that took place as we were providing psychotherapy at the outbreak of the pandemic. These include general changes in the platform of psychotherapy and in the focus of sessions at both process and content levels. These changes represent both barriers and opportunities for the recovery process. Following a description of these changes we discuss and outline adaptations that are needed for sustaining patient's sense of their own agency and of the intersubjective nature of the session. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews the use of psychotherapeutic approaches to treat individuals who have committed sex crimes and/or have problematic sexual interests (PSI); including types of psychotherapy used, descriptions of preventive and reintegration programmes, and highlighting specific theoretical controversies. In the second part, experts from Canada, the Czech Republic, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States, who participated in an International Consensus Meeting held in Prague (2017), summarize treatment programmes in their countries. The comparison revealed some general findings: each country has variability between its own programmes; most countries have different programmes for people who are in custody and who are in the community; the state-directed treatment programmes are primarily focused on criminal individuals, while non-criminal individuals are treated in preventive programmes and/or in special clinics or are untreated; the presence of PSI in patients is acknowledged in most programmes, although specific programmes exclusively for individuals with PSI rarely exist. Studies on effectiveness are difficult to compare due to methodologic, political, and cultural differences. Further communication between more countries to share knowledge about successful treatments and preventive approaches is needed, especially enhanced international collaboration between researchers and clinicians to verify the effectiveness of current clinical and experimental program, rs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is vital to better understand and effectively treat suicide, as it remains a leading cause of death for youth. The present article discusses the epidemiology of suicidal outcomes for youth and provides an overview of existing treatments. The "Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality" (CAMS) – an evidence-based suicide-specific treatment – is presented, followed by a discussion of the potential benefits of adapting it to youth. Patient-defined "suicidal drivers," which are identified and targeted within CAMS-guided treatment, may be especially pertinent to suicidal youth who are in the beginning stages of grappling with their experience related to suicide. Current efforts to adapt CAMS for suicidal adolescents and children are described. Crucially, with further development and rigorous clinical research, adaptations of CAMS may one day provide an empirically-proven and reliable approach to reducing suicide risk in adolescents and children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on routine outcome monitoring in psychotherapy settings is plentiful but not without implementation obstacles. In fact, there is a relative dearth of real-time outcome monitoring in substance use treatment settings. Numerous barriers to the development and implementation of clinical decision support tools and outcome monitoring of substance use patients, including the need to establish expected trajectories of change and use of reliable change indices have been identified (Goodman, McKay, & DePhilippis, 2013). The current study was undertaken to develop expected trajectories of change and to demonstrate the treatment effectiveness of a dual diagnosis intensive outpatient program. The expected trajectories of change for days of substance use and depression scores were developed using predictive equation models from derivation samples and then applied to cross-validation samples. Predictive equations to monitor substance use were developed and validated for all patients and for only patients who were actively using substance at the time of admission, as well as to monitor severity of their depression symptom on a weekly basis. Validation of the equations was assessed through the use of Cohen's kappa (κ), receiver operating characteristic curves, reliable change index, and percentage improvement. Large effect sizes for reductions in substance use (Cohen's d =.76) and depressive symptoms (d = 1.10) are reported. The best predictive models we developed had absolute accuracy rates ranging from 95 to 100%. The findings from this study indicate that predictive equations for depressive symptoms and days of substance use can be derived and validated on dual diagnosis samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Little is known about the impact of expectations on persistence in couple and family therapy. A better understanding of the factors that contribute to persistence in therapy is key to understanding therapeutic dropout. We report results of a secondary grounded theory analysis of individual, couple, and family therapy clients' therapy expectations and their intention to persist in therapy. Participants were 19 clients of MFTs. Results indicate that clients carry expectations about the therapist, therapy process, duration, and outcome. Positive disconfirmation (Tambling & Johnson, 2010) of negative expectations contributed to therapy persistence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Latina immigrants face a number of challenges as they adapt to their new culture. This article presents Relational Cultural Theory (RCT) as a model for understanding the challenges Latina immigrants may present in psychotherapy. The RCT concepts of mutual empathy and empowerment, connections, condemned isolation, the central relational paradox, and power-over dynamics are used to understand the challenges Latina immigrants experience. Sociopolitical and cultural factors that interact to produce power-over dynamics are identified to show how Latina immigrants are at increased risk for major disconnections. A vignette shows how clinicians can use RCT to provide more culturally relevant treatment in their work with Latina immigrants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]