Emotive Therapy Research Articles

Investigating the Effectiveness of Emotion-Focused Therapy on Perceived Stress and Alexithymia in Patients With Coronary Heart Disease in Rasht City, Iran

Background Coronary heart disease is one of the most common diseases that can affect the mental and bodily health of people. Objective This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of emotion-focused therapy (EFT) on perceived stress and alexithymia in patients with coronary heart disease. Methods This was a quasi-experimental study with a pre-test-post-test design with a control group in 2019 on 30 patients diagnosed with coronary heart disease who were referred to Dr. Heshmat Hospital in Rasht City, Iran. The patients were selected by simple random sampling and assigned to 2 groups of 15, including an experimental group and a control group. The assessment tools included the 14-item perceived stress scale (PSS-14) and the 20-item Toronto alexithymia scale (TAS-20), which were completed before and after the intervention. The experimental group received EFT in eight 90-min sessions for two months. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, multivariate analysis of covariance and the Bonferroni post hoc test. Results There was a significant difference between the experimental group that underwent EFT and the control group that did not receive any treatment (F2, 25= 170.5, P<0.001, η2P=0.932). Meanwhile, according to the adjusted means, this difference indicates the effectiveness of EFT. Conclusion EFT training can play an important role as an adjunctive and psychological treatment along with drug intervention in reducing the perceived stress and alexithymia.

MANAGING INTRAFAMILIAL CONFLICT: “CATCHING THE BULLET” FROM EMOTIONALLY FOCUSED THERAPY

Family engagement and intervention have been associated with improved mental health treatment outcomes for patients of all ages. However, methods by which to prepare psychiatrists to effectively work with families have presented a challenge. Early career psychiatrists reported that family skills were the least taught during residency and among the skills most needed after graduation. To teach a circumscribed, clinically practical family skill with which to more effectively manage intrafamilial conflict, the NewYork-Presbyterian Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Residency Training Program developed a “catching the bullet” workshop, based on emotionally focused therapy (EFT).

26.2 An RCT and a Follow-up RCT: Epigenetic Effects of PTSD Remediation Using Clinical Emotional Freedom Therapy (EFT), and an RCT on the Effect of EFT on Stress Biochemistry

This presentation will discuss 3 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that studied the effects of emotional freedom techniques (EFTs), an evidence-based method validated in over 100 clinical trials. One RCT examined cortisol, one studied gene expression, and the third analyzed microRNAs that silence DNA base pairs.

Treatment Fidelity and Outcome in CBT for Youth with Autism: The MEYA Fidelity Scale

ABSTRACT Objective Assessing treatment fidelity in effectiveness research is critical to interpreting study findings. This paper details the development and initial psychometric evaluation of the Modular Evidence-Based Practices for Youth with Autism Fidelity Scale (MEYA-FS) designed to support the assessment of cognitive-behavioral treatments for youth with autism in effectiveness research. Method Recorded treatment sessions (N = 338) were randomly selected from 77 youth (M age = 9.65 years, SD = 1.87; 50.67% White; 85.33% male) who received the Schema, Emotion, and Behavior-Focused Therapy for Children (SEBASTIEN) (n = 51) or Coping Cat (n = 24) program. Results The MEYA-FS Adherence items displayed acceptable interrater reliability, but more than half of the MEYA-FS Competence items did not. The magnitude and pattern of correlations supported the score validity of the MEYA-FS Adherence and Competence items and subscales. However, some corresponding Adherence and Competence items displayed significant overlap. Scores on each Adherence subscale distinguished between the SEBASTIEN and Coping Cat programs, providing support for discriminant validity. Finally, higher Adherence and Competence subscales predicted significant improvements in youth clinical outcomes (adjustment problems in the school setting, social-communication difficulties, restrictive/repetitive behaviors, and externalizing problems), providing initial evidence for predictive validity. Conclusions The psychometric properties of the MEYA-FS make it appropriate for supporting efforts to evaluate cognitive-behavioral interventions for youth with autism in effectiveness and implementation research.

Effect of Predictive Nursing Combined with Emotional Therapy on Rehabilitation Effect and Psychological State of Patients with Brain Injury after the Operation.

Objective. To explore the influence of predictive nursing combined with emotional therapy on the rehabilitation effect and psychological state of patients with brain injury after the operation and to analyze its application value to patients with brain injury after the operation. Methods. 70 postoperative patients with brain injury who went to our hospital for diagnosis and treatment were selected as the key figures of this experiment, including 31 female patients and 39 male patients. In order to ensure the uniformity of data, medical staff need to divide patients into an experimental group and a control group through the double-blind method, with 35 cases in each group. The patients in the two groups need to take the relevant diagnosis and surgical treatment measures after admission. The patients in the control group take routine nursing, providing patients with a clean and tidy ward is convenient for patients to manage nursing, and for patients to bring comfortable treatment relief. The patients in the experimental group take predictive nursing combined with emotional therapy, which is to master the basic situation of patients, according to the quality of patients, and develop comprehensive nursing measures for patients. The psychological status, complication incidence rate, treatment effectiveness, and nursing satisfaction of the two groups were compared and analyzed. Results. The psychological status, complication incidence rate, nursing efficiency, and nursing satisfaction of patients in the experimental group were significantly better than those in the control group (P < 0.05). Conclusion. Predictive nursing combined with emotional therapy for patients with brain injury after the operation can effectively alleviate bad mood of patients, reduce the incidence rate of complications, improve the nursing satisfaction of patients, as well as provide patients with high-quality treatment and nursing services. It has a certain clinical application value and is worth popularizing.

Medical Family Therapy with Diverse Populations Part II: Understanding & Treating Interracial & International Couples with Chronic Illness Using Emotionally Focused MedFT

ABSTRACT Background: Globalization has resulted in the increase of interracial and interracial-international couple relationships around the world, some of whom also live with chronic illness. Despite growing positive attitudes toward interracial relationships, these couples experience multiple health disparities and disparate treatments compared to same-race couples. Aims: In this paper, we illuminate the general experience of interracial couples around the world to: (1) draw special attention to how sociocultural discourses influence them individually and as a couple; (2) highlight the disparities in equitable health care received by interracial couples; and (3) discuss how Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) is a useful framework for working with interracial couples with chronic illness and how it can be a larger training area in medical family therapy (MedFT) and its application to chronic health issues faced by couples. Method: We include a case example integrating EFT and the BPSS model to address the cross-cultural experiences and treatment needs of interracial couples struggling with a chronic illness experience. Discussion: Clinical recommendations include the necessity of multipartiality and self-of-the-therapist examinations alongside sociocultural assessment and culturally atuned treatment of interracial couples with chronic illness. Future directions include advocating for the expansion of EFT training in MedFT and chronic illness treatment.

Experiences of the step-out technique in emotion-focused therapy for clients with autistic process

ABSTRACT Lower levels of experiential processing are associated with poorer therapeutic outcomes. Clients with autistic process are reported to experience sensory-body awareness processing problems which is recognized as an interoception marker. The Step-Out is a simple bodily technique, used within the Alba Method, to achieve an emotionally neutral, relaxed, and alert state. The aim of this study was to explore the experiences of clients with autistic process with the Step-Out. Eleven clients learned and spoke about the technique. A thematic analysis of clients’ responses produced an overall theme ‘In sensing me to connecting to you’. This contained three broad themes: In-and-out of interoceptive contact, letting go of tension and beyond self-experience. Clients were able to verbally describe their internal sensations and perceptions following the task. Responses ranged across an experiential continuum from emotional overwhelm, to no felt change to experiences of relational connection. Preliminary findings provide promising support for the utility of the Step-Out as a mini experiential task to help clients with autistic process shift their attention from an externalized to an internalized process, and to recognize, express, and regulate their internal states. Findings are tentative due to the exploratory nature, limited participants, and lack of assessment measures.

The coregulatory effects of emotionally focused therapy

AbstractThis study examined the heart rate synchrony between a single couple in emotionally focused therapy (EFT) as a method of measuring coregulatory effects over the course of treatment. A clinician who is an EFT certified therapist, supervisor, and trainer administered all eight sessions in a private practice setting. Surrogate synchrony analysis assessed heart rate synchrony between partners, indicating that significant heart rate synchrony was more likely over time. Significant heart rate synchrony was more likely during sessions that focused on clients’ sharing attachment injuries, bonds, and longings with their partner compared to sessions more focused on cognitive processing of the relationship. Additionally, there were delays in heart rate synchrony that occurred between the couple, which may be indicative of the emotional processing speed of the empathic response of each partner. Understanding the physiological synchrony patterns between dyads in treatment could clarify the potential of coregulation in the therapeutic process.

MENGATASI KEJENUHAN PEMBELAJARAN DARING MELALUI KONSELING RATIONAL EMOTIF THERAPY PADA SISWA SMK NEGERI 3 PATI

The objectives of this study are: 1) To describe the factors that cause online learning saturation in class XI majoring in catering services for the 2020/2021 academic year. 2) Helping overcome the saturation of online learning in class XI of the culinary service of SMK Negeri 3 Pati for the 2020/2021 academic year through Rational Emotive Therapy counseling.Based on the results of the study, it shows that after the counselee is given Rational Emotive Therapy Counseling, it can be seen that the cause is the counselee who is bored with online learning because he procrastinates on assignments and thinks there is no point in doing assignments if he doesn't understand the material, so that the counselee is left behind in a lot of subject matter and has a negative impact. on student grades. For this reason, counselors apply Rational Emotive Therapy counseling so that they can overcome student boredom during online learning.

MENGATASI KECEMASAN SISWA MENGHADAPI PEMBELAJARAN DARING MELALUI KONSELING RATIONAL EMOTIVE THERAPY DENGAN TEKNIK DESENSITISASI SISTEMATIS

This study aims to: (1) describe the factors that influence students' anxiety in facing online learning in students at SMPN 2 Gebog Kudus (2) Overcoming students' anxiety facing online learning through Rational Emotive Therapy counseling with systematic desensitization techniques at SMPN 2 Gebog Kudus. The subjects studied were 2 class VIII students of SMP N 2 Gebog Kudus who experienced anxiety in facing online learning. The method of data collection uses the method of observation, interviews, and documentation which is carried out in depth so that later it will get accurate results on the problems studied by the author. Based on the results of the study, it can be concluded that counselees experience anxiety in facing online learning which is characterized by not understanding the material, fear of online assignments, lack of concentration in learning, experiencing obstacles in learning, and fear of not going to class. To assist counselees in overcoming anxiety in facing online learning, rational emotive therapy counseling is given with systematic desensitization techniques. By using rational emotive therapy counseling, systematic desensitization techniques can produce behavioral changes in clients to be able to understand the material, not afraid of assignments, able to concentrate on learning, have no learning barriers, and believe that they can go to class.

Rational emotive health therapy for the management of depressive symptoms among parents of children with intellectual and reading disabilities in English language.

Background:There is little data in developing countries such as Nigeria with regard to the impact of caring for their children with intellectual and reading disability (IRD) on the quality of life of the parents and the risk of psychopathology.Objective:The main objective of the study was to assess the level of psychopathology, i.e., depression among parents of children with intellectual and reading disabilities.Methods:This was pretest/posttest control group design with 198 parents (99 fathers/99 mothers) of 100 children with the diagnosis of IRD. The measures used in this study for data collection was Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). Repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was employed for data analysis.Results:Result obtained showed a significant high proportion of depressive symptoms among parents of children with intellectual and reading disabilities at initial assessment. Furthermore, the REHT intervention resulted in a significant reduction in depression of parents in treatment group as compared to those in the control group.Conclusion:The presence of a child with intellectual and reading disabilities does not cause parents to become depressed but irrational beliefs about their children’s mental and reading deficiencies may contribute to unhealthy thinking and feelings about the future of their children. REHT is very effective in assisting depressed parents of children with intellectual and reading disabilities to think rationally about their children and work towards overcoming disability-related as well as behavior-related irrational beliefs. The mental health providers, therapists and counselors should apply the REHT in managing people with psychological distress especially parents of children with intellectual and reading disabilities who may have psychological diagnosis of depression.

Estimating the effects of physical violence and serious injury on health-related quality of life: Evidence from 19 waves of the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia Survey

ObjectiveThis study aims to investigate the effect of physical violence and serious injury on health-related quality of life in the Australian adult population.MethodsThis study utilised panel data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey. HRQoL was measured through the physical component summary (PCS), mental component summary (MCS), and short-form six-dimension utility index (SF-6D) of the 36-item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36). Longitudinal fixed-effect regression models were fitted using 19 waves of the HILDA Survey spanning from 2002 to 2020.ResultsThis study found a negative effect of physical violence and serious injury on health-related quality of life. More specifically, Australian adults exposed to physical violence and serious injury exhibited lower levels of health-related quality of life. Who experienced physical violence only had lower MCS (β = −2.786, 95% CI: −3.091, −2.481) and SF-6D (β = −0.0214, 95% CI: −0.0248, −0.0181) scores if switches from not experiencing physical violence and serious injury. Exposed to serious injury had lower PCS (β = −5.103, 95% CI: −5.203, −5.004), MCS (β = −2.363, 95% CI: −2.480, −2.247), and SF-6D (β = −0.0585, 95% CI: −0.0598, −0.0572) score if the adults not experiencing physical violence and serious injury. Further, individuals exposed to both violence and injury had substantially lower PCS (β = -3.60, 95% CI: -4.086, -3.114), MCS (β = −6.027, 95% CI: −6.596, −5.459), and SF-6D (β = −0.0716, 95% CI: −0.0779, −0.0652) scores relative to when the individuals exposed to none.ConclusionOur findings indicate that interventions to improve Australian adults’ quality of life should pay particular attention to those who have experienced physical violence and serious injury. Our findings suggest unmet mental health needs for victims of physical violence and serious injuries, which calls for proactive policy interventions that provide psychological and emotional therapy.

The Role of Beliefs About Emotions in Emotion-Focused Therapy for Binge-Eating Disorder

Individuals with binge-eating disorder (BED) often experience emotion regulation deficits, including negative beliefs about emotions and low emotional expressivity. The current exploratory study examined whether emotion-focused therapy (EFT) for BED could change negative beliefs about emotions and emotional expressivity. Twenty participants were randomly allocated to either immediate treatment of 12 weekly one-hour sessions of EFT for BED, or a waitlist control group. Beliefs about emotions and emotional expressivity were assessed before and after 12 sessions of EFT or 12 weeks on the waitlist. A repeated measures ANOVA was used to examine beliefs about emotions and emotional expressivity changes. EFT for BED resulted in significant changes in particular beliefs about emotions (Overwhelming and uncontrollable, shameful and irrational, invalid and meaningless, and total score on the beliefs about emotions questionnaire) but not emotional expressivity treatment outcomes. This pilot study provides preliminary evidence that EFT may be effective in improving maladaptive beliefs about emotions in adults with BED.Trial registration ACTRN12620000563965, 14 May 2020, retrospectively registered.

Emotionally-Focused Couples Therapy and Gay and Lesbian Couples: Considerations for Pursuer-Distancer Patterns

Emotionally-Focused Couples Therapy and Gay and Lesbian Couples: Considerations for Pursuer-Distancer Patterns

Enhancing the effects of emotion-focused individual and couples therapy by nonviolent communication

ABSTRACT Nonviolent communication (NVC), a person-centered communication process, is a potential tool for enhancing the interpersonal effects of emotion-focused therapy. After establishing NVC’s model for fostering compassionate communication and connection between people, we present NVC’s interpersonal processes and the theoretical premises for its use in emotion-focused therapy. We elaborate how an emotion-focused therapist could introduce NVC as a facilitating tool for helping clients express their needs in a manner that likely engenders compassion. NVC also assists clients in hearing others with empathy outside the therapy session, without the emotion regulation support from the therapist. The timing for the beneficial use is described for both the individual and couples therapy process.

Emotion-focused therapy for grief and bereavement

ABSTRACT We present an Emotion Focused Therapy perspective on working with grief and bereavement. This perspective considers emotions as a fundamentally adaptive signaling system that provides people with important information about their needs and goals. Thus the focus in working with grief and bereavement in EFT is to access and symbolize people’s adaptive grief around their loss. When this grief is blocked by other emotional states, such as lingering resentments, guilt, or fear of emotional pain, it is important for these other emotions to also be accessed and differentiated from the grief. This emotional processing can be facilitated through an empathic relational stance and experiential interventions which are guided by emotion theory and process diagnosis.

Chronic Pain in Older Adults: A Neuroscience-Based Psychological Assessment and Treatment Approach

Chronic pain remains a serious healthcare challenge, particularly for older adults who suffer substantial disability and are susceptible to serious risks from pain medications and invasive procedures. Psychotherapy is a promising option for older adults with chronic pain, since it does not contribute to medical or surgical risks. However, standard psychotherapies for chronic pain, including cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), acceptance and commitment therapy, and mindfulness-based interventions, produce only modest and time-limited benefits for older adults. In this article, we describe a novel, evidence-based psychological assessment and treatment approach for older adults with chronic pain, including a detailed case example. The approach begins with reviewing patients’ pain, psychosocial, and medical histories to elicit evidence of a subtype of chronic pain called centralized (primary, nociplastic, or psychophysiologic) pain, which is highly influenced and may even be caused by life stress, emotions, and alterations in brain function. Patients then undertake a novel psychotherapy approach called emotional awareness and expression therapy (EAET) that aims to reduce or eliminate centralized pain by resolving trauma and emotional conflicts and learning healthy communication of adaptive emotions. Our published preliminary clinical trial (n = 53) indicated that EAET produced statistically significant and large effect size advantages over CBT in pain reduction and marginally greater improvements in pain interference than CBT for older adults with chronic musculoskeletal pain. Geriatric mental healthcare providers may learn this assessment and treatment approach to benefit many of their patients with chronic pain.

Reduction of Hopelessness Through Spiritual Emotional Freedom Techniques Therapy in Chronic Kidney Disease Patients Undergoing Hemodialysis

Hopelessness has been identified as a major psychological problem that exacerbates the clinical outcomes of chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients undergoing hemodialysis (HD). Hopelessness is mostly reduced by cognitive therapy, but the results are delayed, so a spiritual element is needed. Spiritual emotional freedom technique (SEFT) therapy can reduce hopelessness because it not only focuses on cognition, but also involves spiritual, psychological, and physical elements. This study aimed to determine the effects of SEFT therapy on the hopelessness of CKD patients undergoing HD. This research was quasi-experimental with pre- and post-test control group designs. The sample size was 64 respondents, who were divided into two groups, each consisting of 32 respondents who were selected by purposive sampling. SEFT therapy was conducted four times. Hopelessness was measured using the Beck Hopelessness Scale (BHS). The data were analyzed by paired t-test and independent samples t-test. Before receiving SEFT, the two groups did not indicate differences in hopelessness (p = 0.141). However, after receiving SEFT, the respondents’ hopelessness in the experimental group was reduced significantly (p = 0.000). Hopelessness in the experimental and control groups also differed significantly after the intervention (p = 0.000). This study revealed that SEFT reduced the hopelessness of CKD patients undergoing HD. SEFT therapy can be implemented in clinical practice areas of nursing to support patient care.&#x0D; Keywords: chronic kidney disease, hemodialysis, hopelessness, spiritual emotional freedom technique&#x0D; &#x0D; Abstrak&#x0D; &#x0D; Mengurangi Keputusasaan Melalui Terapi Spiritual Emotional Freedom Techniques Pada Pasien Penyakit Ginjal Kronik yang Menjalani Hemodialisis. Keputusasaan telah diidentifikasi sebagai salah satu masalah psikologis utama yang memperburuk hasil klinis pasien penyakit ginjal kronik (PGK) yang menjalani hemodialisis (HD). Keputusasaan sebagian besar dikurangi dengan melibatkan unsur kognitif, akan tetapi hasilnya mengalami keterlambatan sehingga dibutuhkan unsur spiritual. Terapi spiritual emotional freedom technique (SEFT) dapat mengurangi keputusasaan karena tidak hanya berfokus pada kognitif tetapi juga melibatkan unsur spiritual, psikis, dan fisik. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui pengaruh terapi SEFT terhadap keputusasaan pasien PGK yang menjalani HD. Penelitian ini merupakan quasi-experiment dengan rancangan pretest dan posttest control group. Besar sampel sebanyak 64 responden yang dibagi menjadi dua kelompok, dan masing-masing kelompok terdiri dari 32 responden dipilih secara purposive sampling.Terapi SEFT dilakukan sebanyak empat kali. Keputusasaan diukur menggunakan Beck Hopelessness Scale (BHS). Data dianalisis dengan uji paired t-test dan uji independent samples t-test. Sebelum menerima SEFT kedua kelompok tidak menunjukkan perbedaan keputusasaan (p = 0,141). Namun, setelah menerima SEFT, keputusasaan responden di kelompok eksperimen berkurang secara signifikan (p = 0,000). Keputusasaan pada kelompok eksperimen dan kontrol juga berbeda secara signifikan setelah intervensi dilakukan (p = 0,000). Studi ini mengungkapkan bahwa SEFT mengurangi keputusasaan pasien PGK yang menjalani HD. Terapi SEFT dapat diimplementasikan dibidang praktik klinis keperawatan untuk mendukung perawatan pasien. &#x0D; Kata Kunci: hemodialisis, keputusasaan, penyakit ginjal kronik, spiritual emotional freedom technique

Cerebral processing of emotions in phantom eye pain patients: An event related potential study

PurposePhantom eye pain (PEP) is a major clinical problem after eye removal with no standard treatment protocol to date. As pain is a multidimensional experience associated with emotional and cognitive components, this study aimed to explore the possible neuropsychological mechanisms of PEP in a perspective of emotional cognition, in order to provide a basis for clinical treatment. MethodsVisual oddball event-related potentials (ERPs) under different external emotional stimuli (Disgust, Fear, Sadness, Happiness, Erotica and Neutral) were tested in 12 patients and 12 healthy volunteers. Participants' affective states were measured with the Mood Disorder Questionnaire (MDQ), the Hypomania Checklist-32 (HCL-32), and the Plutchik–van Praag Depression Inventory (PVP). The amplitudes and latencies of N1, P2, N2 and P3 components were analyzed by three-way ANOVA, i.e., group (2) ​× ​emotion (6) ​× ​electrode (3). Multiple comparisons were performed using Bonferroni's test. ResultsLonger N1 latencies, increased N1 amplitudes; shorter P2 latencies under Disgust and Happiness, decreased P2 amplitudes; shorter N2 latencies under Erotica, increased N2 amplitudes were found in patients compared with controls. There was no main effect of group or interaction effect on P3 latencies and P3 amplitudes. The MDQ and HCL-32 scores were lower, and the N1 latencies under Sadness were negatively correlated with PVP scores in patients. ConclusionsPEP patients showed reversed patterns in exogenous attention allocation and enhanced involuntary attention to emotional stimuli compared with controls. This study demonstrated cortical processing of emotions in PEP patients and could provide a basis for developing emotional intervention therapy.

“The scientific flourishing of Emotion-Focused Therapy”: a bibliometric analysis of EFT articles in Web of Science databases

ABSTRACT Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT) is an empirically supported humanistic treatment that considers clients’ emotional processes as the path to therapeutic change. The present aim was to develop a bibliometric study of EFT articles published in the Web of Science (WoS) Core Collection. Books and chapters were not included in this research. The bibliometric analysis was performed using Hiscite and VosViewer. Results showed 273 publications on EFT in WoS, the first being in 1994. The most relevant areas were depression and anxiety. The most productive author is Greenberg (n = 56; GCS = 2050). The 51.28% of publications corresponds to the last five years (2016–2020), observing a substantial increase in publications comparing with previous years. It is concluded that EFT is a psychotherapeutic orientation in recent scientific growth, with potential interest for further development in next years. The absence of results in WoS prior to 1994 is a limitation, given the origins of EFT in the 1970s. Extension of this study is recommended, including: publications about emotionally focused therapy, publications from other databases different from WoS, together with books and chapters. The importance of these results is discussed to allow other researchers and professionals to know deeply about the scientific production in EFT and its impact.