Continued Evolution of Family Therapy: The Last Twenty Years

There have been numerous accounts of the history and major trends and issues in family therapy during the field's first three decades in the literature (see for example: Broderick & Shrader, 1981; Framo, 1972; Guerin, 1976; Kaslow, 1973, 1977, 1980; Nichols, 1986, 1999 for some varied depictions, written from each respective author's unique lens). Viewed as a set, packaged with different, yet interrelated contents, they offer a multihued portrait of the emerging field during its infancy, childhood, and adolescence. Now it is time to move on and look at the adulthood era as it has unfolded.     

The Shattering of the Stimulus Barrier: The Case for an Integrative Approach in Short-Term Treatment of Psychological Trauma

The paper argues that the integrative psychotherapy approach is ideally suited to the treatment of psychological trauma. A brief term intervention model, devised by psychotherapists working with trauma in the South African context, is presented to illustrate this premise. It is asserted that posttraumatic stress represents a disorder in which dysfunction occurs both internally and externally, according to Freud at the interface of these two aspects of psychological functioning, i.e., at the ego boundary. Disturbance manifests in recognizable cognitive, behavioral, and somatic symptoms and in addition carries unconscious associations and anxieties. The ideal approach to treatment thus appears to be to draw on the relative strengths of both the psychodynamic and cognitive-behavioral schools. Existing trauma intervention models reflect the centrality of integration in many respects, although this does not seem to be explicitly recognized. The five components of the model referred to above are outlined and each component is explored in terms of its efficacy within both a cognitive-behavioral and a psychodynamic framework. Illustrative case material is provided to demonstrate the mechanisms at work in each case. The paper argues that the clinical success of the model lies in its integrative perspective and that psychotherapy integration should be recognized as the approach of choice in the treatment of traumatized individuals.     

Combined Individual/Marital Therapy: A Conflict Resolution Framework and Ethical Considerations

This paper illustrates how couple and individual treatment formats can be intertwined. A conflict resolution theoretical framework structures treatment around three goals: (1) relieving symptoms (anger, depression, and marital distress), (2) facilitating resolution of the couple's conflicts, and (3) building communication and conflict resolution skills. The literature review focuses on why combining individual and couple therapy is often important for married clients. Two Bicycles, an illustrative case incorporating both conjoint and individual interventions, is presented and analyzed with regard to when each format seems beneficial. Ethical and practical issues raised by dual format treatment include potential harm, informed consent, dual roles, confidentiality, and time and financial costs.     

Integrative Family Therapy

This paper describes an integrative approach to marital and family therapy in which psychodynamic (particularly object relations), family systems, and behavioral (particularly cognitive–behavioral) theory are blended in a flexible and tailored therapeutic approach. Human personality in its most significant contexts is a consistent focus. Background factors in the development to the approach and illustrative case materials are included.     

发展认知神经科学研究述评

发展认知神经科学是发展心理学与认知神经科学相结合而形成的跨学科研究领域,旨在从神经、行为和情境三个水平,对认知发展的方方面面进行整合性研究。本文从发展认知神经科学的研究内容、研究方法及其对发展心理学的贡献进行了梳理,并对该学科未来发展的趋势进行了展望。     

Integrative Complexity Coding Raises Integratively Complex Issues

Conway, Conway, Gornick, and Houck (2014) report a major effort to automate integrative complexity coding. Judging this effort requires researchers to be more explicit in articulating key methodological assumptions about the coding process and theoretical assumptions about the construct. Unresolved issues include: (1) when, and on what basis, we should attribute divergences between human coders and algorithms to overestimations or underestimations by one or the other approach; and (2) to what extent second‐generation algorithms can yield Pareto improvements that reduce errors of both underestimation and overestimation. Further progress in developing natural language processing measures of this cognitive style will require sharper definitions of target constructs: in particular, different types of differentiation (dialectical and elaborative) and integration (hierarchical and flexible) and clearer guidelines for factoring context into assessments.     

The “Deliberative Digital Divide:” Opinion Leadership and Integrative Complexity in the U.S. Political Blogosphere

This study examined the association between political ideology and linguistic indicators of integrative complexity and opinion leadership in U.S. political blog posts (N = 519). Using Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC) text analysis, we found that the posts of conservative bloggers were more integratively simple than those of liberal bloggers. Furthermore, in support of a proposed opinion leadership model of integrative complexity, the relationship between ideology and integrative complexity was mediated by psychological distancing (an indicator of a hierarchical communication style). These findings demonstrate an ideological divide in the extent to which the blogosphere reflects deliberative democratic ideals.