In-“Breadth” Cognitive Psychotherapy

Abstract

In-"Breadth" Cognitive Psychotherapy Developments in Cognitive Psychotherapy Windy Dryden and Peter Trower (Eds.) London: Sage Publication Ltd. 1988. (245pp.) In the preface to this compilation Windy Dryden and Peter Trower state that their aim is to present the breadth of study currently being carried out in this field with an emphasis on British work. They do indeed present a broad range in what is a concentrated volume. The book is presented in two parts-Principles and Applications-although the basis of this editorial division is questionable. Most of the chapters in both sections have a heavy theoretical emphasis with less weight being placed on how theories can be applied. All chapters are light on clinical data on the outcome of such applications and that is perhaps the main disappointment in this volume. The applications described are largely not applications of the principles presented in the first part, ensuring breadth but sacrificing force of argument. Principles This section is introduced by Cheryl N. Carmin and E. Thomas Dowd with a tightly argued chapter entitled "Paradigms in Cognitive Psychotherapy." They attempt to identify common principles in the current range of cognitive behavioral therapies and their evolution. Their arguments are cogent but the result is highly concentrated. It may prove daunting to the general reader, intending to use the book as an introduction to the field, but it is well worth rereading. The next two chapters alone render this book a worthwhile investment. The first is Richard Wessler's analysis of the relationship between affect and nonconscious processes and how their analysis can be applied in a therapeutic system which he calls Cognitive Appraisal Therapy. His ideas are clearly presented and stimulating. Paul Gilbert's chapter "Emotional Disorders, Brain State, and Psychosocial Evolution" develops the concept of the prepared nature of emotional disorders into a highly original theory. He incorporates observations from ethology, biology, psychopharmacology, and psychology in a refreshingly eclectic approach. He ends with an unassuming section headed "Personal Thoughts on Psychotherapy" in which he draws attention to some glaring deficiencies in current theories. It would have been interesting to read the comments of other theorists on Wessler's and Gilbert's ideas, instead Dryden and Trower include commentaries by Dryden himself and Albert Ellis on a chapter by Russell M. Grieger entitled "From a Linear to a Contextual Model of the ABCs of RET." This chapter begins with an effusive tribute to Ellis; Grieger states later in the chapter that his work "completely endorses and seeks to further the fundamental premises and techniques of RET" (p. 88). Such stated desire not to offend RET orthodoxy may alert the reader that what is to follow contributes little to the cross-fertilization of ideas that is one of the potential rewards from such a multiauthor volume. Grieger's chapter was first published in the RET literature and Ellis and Dryden both state that they find his ideas stimulating. In relation to the two previous chapters, this appears sterile and inward looking. …