Posted by badhaircut on August 11, 2004, at 10:05:32
According to an article in Tuesday's New York Times, psychologists had a conference on the effectiveness of interpersonal psychotherapy that was more like a "civil war" at the APA's annual meeting 12 days ago.
-quote-
The issue of which therapies are based on science and which are not has recently become [very] divisive....The topic was debated before a raucous, packed hall at the annual meetings of the American Psychological Association in Honolulu, held July 28 to Aug. 1. ... "The split in the field is bigger than it ever has ever been," said Dr. Drew Westen.... "The intensity of the acrimony, the distaste, has never been so high."
At bottom, the dispute is over the nature of psychotherapy: Is it an intuitive process, more art than science? Or is it more a matter of a therapist following specific procedures that reliably help people get better?
-unquote-Participants expect the controversy to keep getting bigger.
You can read the original article for the next week free at the NY Times site:
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/10/health/psychology/10ther.html
After this week you have to pay to download it.
Libraries should have hard-copy back issues (Aug 10, 2004: "For Psychotherapy's Claims, Skeptics Demand Proof" by Benedict Carey, New York Times).It may also be available online for free later at these sites:
http://www.wilmingtonstar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040810/ZNYT04/408100368/1002/BUSINESS
http://www.goupstate.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040810/ZNYT04/408100374/1051/news01-bhc
poster:badhaircut
thread:376384
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20040805/msgs/376384.html