DIMENSIONS OF THERAPEUTIC SKILLS AND TECHNIQUES: EMPIRICAL IDENTIFICATION, THERAPIST CORRELATES, AND PREDICTIVE UTILITY (original) (raw)

Practicing psychotherapists (N = 319) from three professional associations completed a 99-item questionnaire assessing their use of therapeutic techniques and skills. Principal component analyses yielded 13 scales, which were analyzed across four therapist variables. Reported therapy interventions varied as a function of the therapist's orientation and, to a lesser extent, as a function of experience, sex, and personal therapy. Eclectics had either the highest or second-highest mean scores on each of the 13 scales, indicating a varied therapeutic arsenal. Across therapist variables, relationshipenhancing behaviors were reportedly most frequently used; flooding and frustration procedures least frequently used. On the basis of 11 scale scores, 90% of behavior therapists and 88% of psychodynamic therapists were correctly classified, but fewer than half of the eclectics were correctly classified.