title: What do psychotherapists really do in practice? An Internet study of over 2,000 practitioners.
abstract: Over 2,200 North American psychotherapists completed a Web-based survey concerning their clinical work, including theoretical orientation, client characteristics, and use of specific psychotherapy techniques. Psychotherapeutic integration was common, with the majority of respondents identifying with more than one theoretical orientation or as having an eclectic orientation. The modal patient was a White female adult suffering from a mood or anxiety disorder and interpersonal problems. Individual psychotherapy was the preferred treatment modality. The most frequently endorsed techniques were relationship-oriented such as conveying warmth, acceptance, understanding, and empathy. The least frequently endorsed techniques were biofeedback, neurofeedback, body and energy therapies, and hypnotherapy. Efforts to disseminate empirically based therapies require understanding and accommodating clinicians' tendencies to integrate techniques.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, West Haven, CT 06516, USA. Joan.Cook@yale.edu
authors.forename: Joan M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Cook
authors.forename: Tatuana
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Biyanova
authors.forename: Jon
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Elhai
authors.forename: Paula P
authors.initials: PP
authors.lastname: Schnurr
authors.forename: James C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Coyne
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002170:Canada; D002321:Career Choice; D003625:Data Collection; D055317:Evidence-Based Practice; D005260:Female; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000145:classification / Q000628:therapy; D008875:Middle Aged; D011364:Professional Practice / Q000145:classification; D024382:Professional Role / Q000523:psychology; D011369:Professional-Patient Relations; D011613:Psychotherapy / Q000145:classification / Q000379:methods*; D013038:Specialization; D014481:United States