Toward a neurobiology of psychotherapy: basic science and clinical applications.
Psychotherapy is used commonly to treat a variety of mental illnesses, yet surprisingly little is known about its biological mechanisms especially in comparison with pharmacotherapy. In this review we survey the current knowledge about changes in brain function following psychotherapeutic intervention that are detectable with current neuroimaging techniques. We also consider the possible role for neuroimaging in refining clinical diagnoses and predicting treatment outcome, which would benefit both clinical decision-making and the cognitive neuroscience of psychotherapy.
Etkin
Amit
A
Center for Neurobiology and Behavior, Kavli Institute for Brain Sciences, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY 10032, USA.
Pittenger
Christopher
C
Polan
H Jonathan
HJ
Kandel
Eric R
ER
D003243:Consciousness / Q000502:physiology; D003952:Diagnostic Imaging; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000628:therapy*; D009446:Neurobiology / Q000639:trends*; D011613:Psychotherapy / Q000639:trends*; D016896:Treatment Outcome