Psychosis: New Existential, Systemic, and Cognitive-Behavioral Developments

Until recently, perhaps the major avenues of working with severely disturbed patients have been based upon either organic-chemical or intrapsychic determinants and treatment components. One recent development is an emphasis upon interpsychic and interpersonal factors and determinants in both the understanding and the treatment of extreme psychotic disturbances. Existential, systemic, and cognitive-behavioral conceptualizations and therapies maintain substantial independence of one another. Yet these three share at least two significant commonalities. One is that they each emphasise the interpsychic and interpersonal. A second is this first commonality has led to some exciting new developments in the understanding and treatment of psychosis.