Are some therapies doing more harm than good? This episode delves into the controversial topic of potentially harmful therapies (PHTs), exploring the evidence behind treatments that may cause more harm than help.

We examine a meta-scientific review of several therapies, including:

•Boot camps for conduct disorder, which are modeled after military basic training.

•Critical Incident Stress Debriefing (CISD), which was developed for emergency responders exposed to severe stress.

•DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education), which aims to limit underage substance use.

•Expressive-experiential psychotherapies, which focus on re-experiencing and intensifying strong emotions.

•Grief counseling, designed to assist individuals in coping with the death of a close contact.

•Scared Straight interventions, which involve at-risk juveniles being confronted by inmates.

This episode explores whether these therapies have sufficient evidence to justify their continued use. The discussion includes the challenges of identifying harmful therapies, and how the replicability crisis in psychology has led to a reevaluation of the credibility of clinical literature.

We look at the importance of evaluating the evidential value of claims of harm by considering factors beyond statistical significance, including:

•Misreporting of statistics

•Statistical power

•Replicability Index (R-Index)

•Bayes factors

Findings from this meta-scientific review highlight that the evidence underlying many PHTs is weak or ambiguous. However, some interventions such as Scared Straight and CISD show stronger evidence for potential harm. The episode concludes with a call for ethical research and practice that prioritizes the safety of patients. Clinicians are urged to critically evaluate treatments and avoid those with weak evidence or potential for harm. Researchers are encouraged to conduct more rigorous, collaborative trials, and to investigate the scientific basis of therapeutic mechanisms.

Read the article for yourself here
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/339718791_Potentially_harmful_therapies_A_meta-scientific_review_of_evidential_value

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Early career psychologist looking for up to date cutting edge CPD?
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Is therapy a one-size-fits-all solution? We explore a groundbreaking meta-analysis of over 1,000 studies on psychotherapy for depression.

Join us as we discuss the surprising findings that challenge our assumptions about what makes therapy effective. We'll delve into the effectiveness of different therapies, the impact of human support in digital interventions, and the importance of personalized treatment plans.

We'll also discuss the limitations of the research and explore the implications for clients, therapists, and policymakers alike.

Tune in to Abstract Intelligence for a thought-provoking discussion on the future of depression treatment.

If you like your tips just a little more human, check out our youtube channel
https://www.youtube.com/@PREP-Registrar

Looking for a supervisor to implement some of these great ideas?
https://findasupervisor.com.au

Early career psychologist looking for up to date cutting edge CPD?
https://learning.prep.clinic

Looking to become a psychology supervisor?
https://stap.org.au

In this episode of Abstract Intelligence, we're diving deep into a fascinating study that explores the impact of seeing different therapists for intake and treatment.

The study, titled "Termination, Appointment Use, and Outcome Patterns Associated with Intake Therapist Discontinuity," looks at what happens when clients meet with one therapist for their initial intake session and then continue therapy with a different therapist.

We'll explore the researchers' findings, including how this "intake therapist discontinuity" affects things like:

• How likely clients are to stick with therapy
• How many sessions clients end up attending
• Whether clients actually get better

We'll also discuss the implications of these findings for how therapy is structured and what it means for both clients and therapists.

Curious to know if seeing different therapists for intake and treatment actually makes a difference?

Tune in to find out!

Want to read the full paper?

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/232548610_Termination_Appointment_Use_and_Outcome_Patterns_Associated_With_Intake_Therapist_Discontinuity

If you like your tips just a little more human, check out our youtube channel
https://www.youtube.com/@PREP-Registrar

Looking for a supervisor to implement some of these great ideas?
https://findasupervisor.com.au

Early career psychologist looking for up to date cutting edge CPD?
https://learning.prep.clinic

Looking to become a psychology supervisor?
https://stap.org.au