Subjective Cues to Deception/Honesty in a High Stakes Situation: An Exploratory Approach

ABSTRACT. The low ecological validity of much of the research on deception detection is a limitation recognized by researchers in the field. Consequently, the present studies investigated subjective cues to deception using the real life, high stakes situation of people making public appeals for help with missing or murdered relatives. It was expected that cues related to affect would be particularly salient in this context. Study 1 was a qualitative investigation identifying cues to deception reportedly used by people accurate at detecting deception. Studies 2 and 3 were then empirical investigations that mainly employed the cues reported in Study 1. A number of subjective cues were found to discriminate between honest and deceptive appeals, including some previously unidentified cues, and cues likely to be context-specific. Most could be categorized under the themes of authenticity of emotion, and negative and positive affective reactions to the appealer. It is concluded that some cues to deception may emerge only in real life, high stakes situations; however, it is argued that some of these may be influenced by observers’ perceptions of the characteristics of offenders, rather than acts of deception per se.     

Real relationship,working alliance,transference/countertransference and outcome in time-limited counseling and psychotherapy

Six client/therapist dyads (three therapists each working with two clients) were studied to determine how the real relationship unfolds over the course of time-limited treatment and how this unfolding relates to the development of the client/therapist working alliance, client transference, and therapist countertransference. We also examined how these indices of the relationship fluctuate as a function of treatment outcome. Results indicate that in general for all six dyads, therapists’ and clients’ ratings of the real relationship and working alliance were strong throughout treatment. However, patterns of real relationship and working alliance over the course of treatment varied between dyads categorized as more vs. less successful. Therapists’ countertransference was low, as was client transference, but differences in ratings were evident when the dyads were classified by outcome.     

In Experiential Sessions, There Is No Therapist or Client: There Is a “Teacher” and a “Practitioner”

In virtually every kind of psychotherapy, therapist and client attend mainly to one another throughout almost the entire session. If each experiential session is to be successful in enabling the person to become the whole new person that the person can become, and to become free of the painful feeling in the painful situation, the radical alternative is for the experiential teacher–therapist and the person to attend mainly to the third thing that is the important center of attention for the person. An even more radical glimpse into the future includes the person having one's own sessions by oneself, complemented by skill-development sessions with the experiential teacher.     

Black client,white therapist: Working with race in psychoanalytic psychotherapy in South Africa

In post‐apartheid South Africa we speak about race extensively. It permeates our workplace, weaves a thread through the fabric of our professional and personal lives, as well as our private conversations and public interactions with others. From within psychoanalytic theory, the thread weaves through the unknown content of our racialized unconscious. When there is a focus on race in the South African psychoanalytic context it largely takes the form of the struggle to articulate the complexities of working with difference, as Swartz notes, or the struggle to map out issues of race. Such struggles are not localized in South Africa, but strongly reflect a much broader struggle within the global psychoanalytic community, as mirrored in the expanding focus on race. Although the consulting rooms seem far removed from the ongoing political tensions that have recently emerged in South Africa, psychoanalytic psychotherapy remains a space of meaningful engagement with the other, and where the therapeutic dyad is one of racial difference it permits an encounter with our racialized unconscious. This article seeks to document the experience of my black client and my white response to her racial pain and struggle; in doing so, I describe the racial ‘contact’ between us and within us that triggers a racialized transference and countertransference dynamic, which contains the space for racial healing for both of us.     

Trainee psychotherapy effectiveness at a psychodynamic training clinic: a practice-based study

The degree to which clinical experience is a significant factor in predicting positive psychotherapeutic outcomes is an open question. Empirical studies comparing experienced and beginning practitioners on differences in client outcomes have yielded mixed results. While multiple sources have indicated that trainees are generally effective therapists, few of these studies have examined the effectiveness of graduate-level therapists in a psychodynamic training program. In this study, conducted in the United States, we use a practice-based research approach to examine the outcomes of clients working with trainees at a community mental health clinic in the northeast United States. The theoretical orientation identified by the clinic and training program is psychodynamic with an interpersonal and/or relational emphasis. Results indicated that clients working with trainees at this clinic demonstrated improvement across several indicators of symptoms and psychosocial functioning over the time they received treatment. Implications for training and service reimbursement are discussed.     

The Relationship Between Client Emotional Expressions, Therapist Interventions, and the Working Alliance: An Exploration of Eight Emotional Expression Events

The relationship between client emotional expression and therapist interventions was studied in two working alliance conditions. An events-focused methodology was used to examine a total of 8 events taken from a variety of therapeutic orientations. Results indicated that, in the presence of a good client–therapist relationship, therapists showed higher levels of empathy and effectively focused on the immediately expressed feelings; in turn, their clients were engaged in exploration of feelings. In poor-relationship dyads, clients expressed negative feelings toward the therapists. Interventions rated as effective by clinical judges were characterized by accurate therapist understanding of clients' emotional expressions and working with strains in the therapeutic relationship. Ineffective interventions were associated with inaccurate assessments of clients' emotional states. Intensive analysis of these sessions led to three distinct models of in-session emotional expression events. Theoretical and practical implications of these models will be discussed.     

Culture-sensitive functional analytic psychotherapy

Functional analytic psychotherapy (FAP) is defined as behavior-analytically conceptualized talk therapy. In contrast to the technique-oriented educational format of cognitive behavior therapy and the use of structural mediational models, FAP depends on the functional analysis of the moment-to-moment stream of interactions between client and therapist. This distinctive feature makes FAP particularly sensitive to the challenges posed by cultural differences between client and therapist. Core elements of FAP philosophy are invoked to argue that this vulnerability paradoxically implies an increased ability to capture and use relevant issues in the therapy process with culturally different clients. This argument focuses FAP's preference for concrete behavior over theoretical modeling, its emphasis on functional principles rather than topographically defined techniques, and its inclusion of the therapist's behavior in the assessment of clients' clinically relevant behavior. Suggestions are given concerning how academic and practical training and personal experience may be used to foster sound multicultural practice.     

Pragmatism, Pluralism, and Psychotherapy Relationships: An Interview with John C. Norcross, Ph.D.

John C. Norcross has made significant contributions in the areas of the transtheoretical model of change, psychotherapy integration, and empirically supported psychotherapy relationships. This interview explores the contributions of pragmatic philosophy and his personal upbringing to his work as a psychotherapy researcher and practitioner. Dr. Norcross discusses the status of the psychotherapy integration movement, the work of the Task Force on Empirically Supported Psychotherapy Relationships, and future trends in psychotherapy over the next 25 years. He emphasizes the importance of a methodological rigor that recognizes the unique characteristics of the psychotherapy relationship. He describes his current interest in the psychotherapy of psychotherapists, illustrating it with his personal challenges in balancing work and home.     

The variability of client,therapist and clinic in psychotherapy outcomes: A three-level hierarchical model

This article investigates the percentage of variance in psychotherapy outcomes explained by the case-mix variables for individual cases, by the therapist (therapist effects), and what additional variance is explained by the clinic with which the therapist is affiliated. While there has been substantial recent research regarding therapist effects, very little has been published regarding clinic-level effects after controlling for therapist effects. The study utilised the largest sample reported to date, using data from 28 clinics with a minimum of 2,000 cases in a clinical range of severity of symptoms with pre-post change scores on an outcome questionnaire. Only cases treated by a therapist with at least 30 cases were included. These selection criteria resulted in a case count of 156,258 clients treated by 874 therapists located at 28 clinics. After controlling for differences in case mix using diagnosis and intake score (severity of symptoms), the resulting analyses indicated that 5.21% of the variance in treatment outcome was explained by the therapist, while another 1.13% of the variance was associated with the clinic. Findings are discussed with implications for practice and policy.     

The facilitative interpersonal skills method: Difficult psychotherapy moments and appropriate therapist responsiveness

The Facilitative Interpersonal Skills (FIS) task is a performance test of therapists’ use of common relational skills (e.g. empathy, building expectations). The FIS method includes (a) materials that simulate difficult client moments on video, which are used to collect therapists’ responses to these situations; and (b) independent ratings of these responses. Many of the FIS items are informed by psychotherapy processes that have been linked to outcome and facilitative conditions that have been reframed as individual therapist skills (e.g. alliance bond capacity). Overall, the FIS has predicted psychotherapy outcome. A single study is described in which FIS predicted the therapist effect using multilevel modelling of a large sample of clients who were nested within therapists. We also summarise two additional outcome studies that used experimental designs. One future direction is to better understand how therapists form responses to these difficult moments. We conclude that forming an optimal therapeutic response during challenging, emergent in‐session situations involves responsiveness (Stiles et al., 1998), or finding a response that fits the clients’ needs within any moment.     

Playing with Fire: Countertransference and Clinical Epistemology

This article explores both theoretical and practical concepts related to the therapist's use of the self in psychotherapy. Particular emphasis is placed on the potential clinical value of countertransference. It is argued that awareness and resolution of personal issues are required for therapists to draw profitably from their own experiences in working with clients. Specific steps in translating the concept of the wounded healer into clinical practice are offered, along with examples from the author's own practice.     

The Relationship Between Momentary States of Therapist Self-Awareness and Perceptions of the Counseling Process

To investigate the role of momentary self-awareness, beginning therapists and their volunteer clients participated in a postsession process recall in which therapist helpfulness and momentary self-awareness were assessed along with client reactions. Therapist anxiety levels and strategies used to manage hindering self-awareness were also examined. Results suggest that momentary states of heightened therapist self-awareness may be hindering. Specifically, when therapists rated themselves as more self-aware from moment to moment during counseling sessions, they also rated themselves as more anxious before the session and their clients rated them as less helpful during the session. In addition, therapists reported using a variety of strategies to manage distracting self-awareness, including focusing on intervention planning and focusing on the client. Implications for therapist training are discussed.     

A training outline for conducting psychotherapy process ratings: An example using therapist technique

Aims: This study addresses the effects of structured training on the development of coding skills used in psychotherapy process research. Method: Participants included graduate trainees enrolled in an APA approved Clinical PhD programme. A course outline for training is reviewed and examined in relation to ratings of therapist techniques used during psychotherapy sessions. Results: The effects of this structured training protocol for raters resulted in good to excellent levels of interrater reliability. Different groups of raters were compared along multiple factors such as level of graduate training, training received on a particular measure, and psychotherapy experience. Discussion: The implications of these findings for rater training in psychotherapy process research are discussed.