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The relationship between therapists' epistemology and their therapy style, working alliance, and use of specific interventions

Posted on:2007-12-25Degree:Ph.DType:Dissertation
University:University of FloridaCandidate:Saferstein, Jocelyn AFull Text:PDF
GTID:1455390005990628Subject:Psychology
Abstract/Summary:
The current study examined the relationship between therapists' epistemic style and their (1) therapy style, (2) emphasis on the working alliance, and (3) use of specific interventions. The study aimed to discover whether or not therapists' epistemologies can predict how therapists report their practice of therapy (e.g., therapy style, working alliance, and use of therapy techniques).;The most robust findings provide provisional support for the notion that there are specific differences in the personal style of the therapist according to the therapists' epistemic assumptions (rationalist versus constructivist). Additionally, therapist epistemology was a significant predictor of their emphasis on the working alliance (Bond subscale), as well as, their use of specific interventions (cognitive behavioral versus constructivist).;The current study extends the developing literature investigating the translation of epistemology in to practice, specifically looking at therapists' self-reports. Further work is needed to see if client reports corroborate therapists' self-report and to investigate whether or not therapists' epistemology affects the outcome of therapy work.
Keywords/Search Tags:Therapists', Therapy style, Working alliance, Epistemology, Specific
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