Dimensions of Psychotherapy: An Experimental and Clinical Approach.

Despite the proliferation of research in psychotherapy over the last decade, clinical lore rather than experimental fact guides the practice of psychotherapy. This is not simply a function of "cultural lag" or of tunnel vision on the part of therapists. The hard yield from all the research has been small and even elementary data on symptom and belief changes in and out of therapy is lacking. The reasons for this have been frequently cited: deficiencies in definition; divergence in valuesystems; lack of agreement regarding appropriate criterion measures; and absence of studies involving a no-treatment control group. Within this gloomy context, this small, tersely written book (144 pages, excluding bibliography, index, and sample research forms) is particularly refreshing. The authors are two University of Minnesota-based psychologists, who skillfully manage three things: (1) a critical review of the psychotherapy process and outcome literature; (2) a report of their own long range follow-up