Learning from Well-Trained and Experienced Dynamic Psychotherapists: Research on the Efficacy of Dynamic Psychotherapy and Its Mechanisms of Change

Abstract

Is psychodynamic therapy (PT) an evidence-based practice? What makes PT work? In the present article we shall discuss empirical evidence for these as well as other vital questions. First, we shall examine the existing findings concerning two of the most widespread myths about PT: (1) PT is not an evidence-based therapy; (2) PT is not directed at and, therefore, not effective at alleviating symptoms. Second, we shall examine some of the existing findings regarding what it is that actually enables change in PT. The aim of the article is to provide some access to the knowledge accumulated from numerous studies on PT treatments, conducted by dozens of therapists, with the hope that it will benefit clinicians.

Keywords:

• psychotherapy research
• evidence-based practice
• effectiveness
• mechanisms of change
• alliance
• adherence

Funding

Sigal Zilcha-Mano would like to acknowledge, with thanks, that the research on which this article is based was supported by a Fulbright Post-Doctoral Fellowship, awarded by the Fulbright commission for Israel, the United States-Israel Educational Foundation.

Notes

¹ Borrowed from Alice in Wonderland, the dodo's verdict announcement at the end of the race, that “everybody has won, and all must have prizes,” has been commonly used to demonstrate that there were few differences that significantly distinguished among various brands of psychotherapy (Rosenzweig, 1936; Luborsky, Singer, & Luborsky, 1975).

² The link for therapists: http://idc.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_b195XJu7GGU52ol; the link for patients: http://idc.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_9nN3BMbovCBqb5z.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Sigal Zilcha-Mano

Sigal Zilcha-Mano, Ph.D., is a licensed clinical psychology, a researcher, and a lecturer. She completed her Ph.D. at Bar-Ilan University, Israel, her first post-doc at Harvard University and her second post-doc as a Fulbright scholar at Adelphi University. Her research focuses on processes of therapeutic change, especially interpersonal processes. She is a psychodynamically oriented psychotherapist.

Jacques P. Barber

Jacques P. Barber, Ph.D., A.B.P.P., is professor and dean of the Derner Institute of Advanced Studies in Psychology, Adelphi University. He is emeritus professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania and adjunct professor at New York University Medical School. He is past president of the society for psychotherapy research and was a recipient of its early career award. His research, which has been funded by the National Institute of Mental Health and the National Institute on Drug Abuse, focuses on the outcome and process of psychodynamic and cognitive therapies for depression, panic disorder, substance dependence, and personality disorders. He has published more than 190 articles, chapters, and books in the fields of psychotherapy and personality.