Group Workbook for Treatment of Persistent Depression: Cognitive Behavioral Analysis System of Psychotherapy (CBASP) Therapist's Guide by Lilane Sayegh and J. Kim Penberthy , and: Group Workbook for Treatment of Persistent Depression: Cognitive Behavioral Analysis System of Psychotherapy (CBASP) Patient's Guide by Lilane Sayegh and J. Kim Penberthy (review)

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issn 0362-4021 © 2017 Eastern Group Psychotherapy Society group, Vol. 41, No. 3, Fall 2017 267 1 Correspondence should be addressed to Danielle La Rocco, MD, Department of Psychiatry , NYU School of Medicine, One Park Avenue, 7th floor, New York, NY 10016. E-mail: Danielle.LaRocco@nyumc.org. Book Reviews Group Workbook for Treatment of Persistent Depression: Cognitive Behavioral Analysis System of Psychotherapy (CBASP) Therapist’s Guide. By Lilane Sayegh and J. Kim Penberthy. New York: Routledge, 2016, 134 pp. Group Workbook for Treatment of Persistent Depression: Cognitive Behavioral Analysis System of Psychotherapy (CBASP) Patient’s Guide. By Lilane Sayegh and J. Kim Penberthy. New York: Routledge, 2016, 103 pp. Reviewed by Danielle La Rocco1 Depression is a major public health concern with an immense need for better, quicker, and more accessible treatments. Over the course of a lifetime, 10%–15% of people will meet criteria for the illness, but most people do not have access to care or do not avail themselves of treatment (Lépine & Briley, 2011). Even in developed countries, only one-third to one-half of individuals with severe symptoms receive treatment. In less-developed countries, few people suffering from depression get mental health treatment at all (Lépine & Briley, 2011). A reliable cure for depression resulting in a complete remission of symptoms has eluded us so far; some patients with depression will remain symptomatic despite multiple interventions with antidepressants and psychotherapy. These lasting symptoms stress not only the individual sufferer but also the social, familial, and economic systems containing that person. The World Health Organization projects that by 2030, depression will be the leading contributor to chronic disability and loss of productive time (Lépine & Briley, 2011). Furthermore, people with persistent depression have a shorter life expectancy because of the risks for suicide, heart 268 la rocco disease, and stroke (Lépine & Briley, 2011). There is a distinct gender difference as well: Worldwide, twice as many women as men are afflicted with depression, especially during their reproductive years, raising questions about how depression may affect populations as a whole. These forecasts are a call to action to the mental health community. What effective and affordable treatments do we have to offer? For group psychotherapists, the cognitive behavioral analysis system of psychotherapy (CBASP) for the treatment of persistent depression offers a specific and well-researched treatment modality. In the preface to both books, the authors indicate that they are well aware of the epidemiological data cited previously. Compelled to rise to the challenge, Liliane Sayegh, a clinical psychologist at the Douglas Mental Health University Institute of Montreal, and J. Kim Penberthy, a clinical psychologist and professor of psychiatry and neurobehavioral science at the University of Virginia, have coauthored two volumes on group CBASP: one for therapists and one for patients. Both authors acknowledge their indebtedness to James P. McCullough Jr., a professor of psychology and psychiatry at Virginia Commonwealth University. He and his collaborators created CBASP, which the authors state is the only evidence-based psychotherapy model designed specifically for patients suffering from persistent depressive disorder (PDD), as defined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). The approach focuses on the particular interpersonal difficulties faced by patients with depression, who often underestimate or ignore their own contributions to undesired social outcomes. The treater’s manual for group CBASP outlines the authors’ theoretical viewpoint: In their assessment, people with PDD function psychologically at a preoperational level. According to Piaget’s model, they do not conceptualize interpersonal situations from multiple viewpoints. In other words, these patients do not “mentalize.” As a result, they fail to appreciate how their actions (a tendency to withdraw, to act with submissiveness or hostility) directly contribute to the negative social outcomes they most dread. This approach, through overt didactic teaching, as well as through the words and actions of the group leader and group members, teaches patients how they do indeed have “stimulus value” within their lives. Ideally, patients become more able to assert their needs over time and are able to attain achievable interpersonal goals. The actual content of the treatment, briefly summarized, is as follows. First, the patient meets individually with a CBASP therapist for...