Clinical Psychology in Europe (E-Journal)
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A Hot-Cold Cognitive Model of Depression: Integrating the Neuropsychological Approach Into the Cognitive Theory Framework
No full textBackground: In the 50 years following Beck’s cognitive theory, empirical research has consistently supported the role of dysfunctional, ‘hot’ cognition in the onset and maintenance of major depressive disorder. Compromised ‘cold’ cognition in attention, memory, and executive control abilities, independent of the affective state, has attracted much clinical interest for its role throughout the course of illness and into remission. We propose integrating cold cognition into Beck’s cognitive theory framework to account for the complementary roles of both hot and cold cognition in depression onset and maintenance.
Method: A critical review of cognitive research was conducted to inform an integrated hot-cold cognitive model of depression.
Results: Cold cognitive deficits likely act as a gateway to facilitate the activation and expression of the hot cognitive biases through a weakened ability to attend, retrieve, and critically assess information. Cold deficits become exacerbated by the negative mood state, essentially ‘becoming hot’, lending to maladaptive emotion regulation through ruminative processes. Depleted cognitive resources contribute to the manifestation of further deficit in problem-solving ability in everyday life, which in itself, may act as a stressor for the onset of recurrent episodes, perpetuating the depressive cycle.
Conclusion: We discuss the interaction between hot and cold cognition within the cognitive theory framework and the potential of complementary hot-cold pathways to elucidate novel means of prevention and treatment for depression
Some Guidelines for Reporting National Regulations on Clinical Psychology for Papers in the Section “Politics and Education” of CPE
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No Health Without Mental Health – European Clinical Psychology Takes Responsibility: 1st European Congress on Clinical Psychology and Psychological Treatment in Dresden, Germany, October 31 – November 2, 2019
No full textThe European Association of Clinical Psychology and Psychological Treatment (EACLPT) was founded in 2017 with the goal of promoting European collaborations on research and education about mental health problems as well as their treatment. In 2019, the association’s first congress will take place to foster such collaborations from October 31st to November 2nd in Dresden, Germany. It will be the first international meeting in the field of clinical psychology at a European level.The conference theme “No Health without Mental Health - European Clinical Psychology Takes Responsibility” expresses our goal of moving mental health into societal focus. Mental disorders are among the most debilitating conditions and clinical psychology offers a wide range of preventive and therapeutic interventions. The discussion of these, as well as underlying etiological models, will be at the heart of the conference. Keynote speakers include Claudi Bockting, Susan Bögels (University of Amsterdam), David Clark (University of Oxford), Stefan Hofmann (Boston University) and Maria Karekla (University of Cyprus).We invite submissions for symposia and poster presentations on the full range of clinical psychological research: diagnostics and classification, psychological and psychobiological mechanisms, psychological treatments, prevention and rehabilitation. We particularly encourage early career researchers to join the conference. Targeted pre-conference workshops, mentoring and financial support can be offered.The conference will be a unique chance to discuss current challenges for mental health in Europe and initiate collaborations and joint projects with colleagues from all over the continent. We look forward to seeing you in Dresden
Integrating Metta Into CBT: How Loving Kindness and Compassion Meditation Can Enhance CBT for Treating Anxiety and Depression
No full textBackground: Loving kindness meditation and compassion meditation are traditional Buddhist practices that have recently been introduced and investigated in psychotherapy with promising results. Both meditation practices emphasize metta, a mental state of positive energy and kindness towards oneself and other beings, as opposed to the anger, hostility, or self-loathing that often accompany emotional problems.
Method: We conducted a qualitative review of the literature to produce an integrative review.
Results: Metta meditation appears to be particularly useful for treating depression and social anxiety, both characterized by low positive affect and negative attitudes and core beliefs about the self.
Conclusion: Metta meditation can aid therapy by promoting more adaptive self-images, social connectedness, and emotional experiences
Clinical Psychology in Spain: History, Regulation and Future Challenges
No full textThe heterogeneity of national regulations in clinical psychology and psychological treatment across Europe requires a detailed description of every regulation to start a shared discussion. In the current paper, we describe the history, legal regulations, a specialized training program, the current status and some future challenges for clinical psychology in Spain. The evolution of clinical psychology in the Spanish National Health System (NHS) towards a health specialty regulated by law, exemplifies a balanced process of expansion, social recognition and professional settlement. Overall, the growth of clinical psychology in Spain may depend on access to leadership and management positions in the NHS that would allow a better organization of care resources to improve citizens’ access to psychological treatment
Evaluating a Programme for Intercultural Competence in Psychotherapist Training: A Pilot Study
No full textBackground: Great cultural diversity among clients poses considerable challenges to mental health service providers. Therefore, staff in the mental health sector needs to be adequately trained. To date, however, there is little empirical evidence regarding such training. The present pilot study evaluates the effect of a standardised training programme to improve the intercultural competence of therapists.
Method: Intercultural competence and therapeutic relationship were measured three times (pre, post and follow-up) in N = 29 psychotherapists. A control group of N = 48 therapists was included at pre-test to control for covariables.
Results: The data show a significant increase in intercultural competence as well as an improvement in the therapeutic relationship. Interestingly, this positive outcome extends to non-immigrant clients.
Conclusion: The results confirm the assumption that culture is not limited to ethnic or national background but includes other dimensions such as age, gender and socioeconomic status which shape illness beliefs and expectations in the psychotherapeutic context. Therefore, intercultural competence can be considered a general therapeutic skill that can be taught in short interventions like the one developed in this study
Evidence-Based Psychodynamic Therapies for the Treatment of Patients With Borderline Personality Disorder
No full textBackground: Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is a serious health issue associated with a high burden for the individual and society. Among the “Big Four” of evidence-based treatments for patients with BPD are two psychodynamic therapies that have evolved from classic psychoanalytic treatment with a change of setting and change of focus: Transference-Focused Psychotherapy (TFP) and Mentalization-Based Treatment (MBT).
Aims: This overview provides a comparison of the two treatments in terms of stance, clinical concepts, costs and key interventions. Furthermore, the current literature on the efficacy of both treatments is reviewed.
Results: While TFP focuses on the content of disintegrated representations of self and other, MBT focuses on the processing of mental states. Both treatments diverge in their clinical concepts and interventions for the treatment of BPD.
Conclusion: Although both treatments are regarded as effective in treating BPD, no direct comparison of both treatments has been made so far. Future studies are needed to investigate mechanisms of change and derive recommendations for a differential indication
The Role of Psychotherapy in the German Health Care System: Training Requirements for Psychological Psychotherapists and Child and Adolescent Psychotherapists, Legal Aspects, and Health Care Implementation
No full textIn Germany every citizen must acquire either public or private health insurance from companies which then cover the expenses for psychotherapeutic in-patient and out-patient treatments within a given set of regulations. Since the commencement of the Psychotherapists' Law in 1999, psychological psychotherapists and child and adolescent psychotherapists are permitted to diagnose and treat mental disorders with psychotherapy under their own responsibility as a legally defined healing profession. Psychotherapists have to use scientifically approved psychotherapeutic approaches for treatment. The qualification and licensure of psychotherapists are highly regulated by the Psychotherapists' Law, which is currently undergoing a process of change
Symptom Perception From a Predictive Processing Perspective
No full textBackground: Bodily symptoms are highly prevalent in psychopathology, and in some specific disorders, such as somatic symptom disorder, they are a central feature. In general, the mechanisms underlying these symptoms are poorly understood. However, also in well-known physical diseases there seems to be a variable relationship between physiological dysfunction and self-reported symptoms challenging traditional assumptions of a biomedical disease model.Method: Recently, a new, predictive processing conceptualization of how the brain works has been used to understand this variable relationship. According to this predictive processing view, the experience of a symptom results from an integration of both interoceptive sensations as well as from predictions about these sensations from the brain.Results: In the present paper, we introduce the predictive processing perspective on perception (predictive coding) and action (active inference), and apply it to asthma in order to understand when and why asthma symptoms are sometimes strongly, moderately or weakly related to physiological disease parameters.Conclusion: Our predictive processing view of symptom perception contributes to understanding under which conditions misperceptions and maladaptive action selection may arise