Practicing Cognitive Therapy: A Guide to Interventions

The application of cognitive therapy is the subject of this casebook, and the treatment is represented by some of the field's leading practitioners. Since its development 35 years ago, the practice of cognitive therapy has been extended beyond the treatment of depression, now also dealing with panic disorders, post-traumatic stress disorders, substance abuse, paranoid delusional disorders, marital conflict, sexual dysfunction, and a variety of affective, anxiety and personality disorders. This volume is aimed at clinicians interested in applying cognitive therapy to a wide range of problems. Each chapter presents treatment descriptions and interventions, offering opinions on why the method works and how to apply it in the realities of clinical practice.

“Robert Leahy should be commended for showing us the breadth and maturity of cognitive therapy. While it was once only a treatment intended for depressive disorders, we now see its effective application in a wide variety of psychiatric illnesses. Practitioners of all therapeutic biases will find these treatment-oriented essays provocative and enlightening. They will be surprised, as I was, that many of the techniques of cognitive therapy can be comfortably integrated into psychodynamic treatments.”

-- Michael H. Sacks, M.D., Cornell Medical College; Columbia University
A well-written and well-edited comprehensive volume that covers the clinical applications of contemporary cognitive therapeutic practice. -- Arthur Freeman, Ed.D., ABPP, Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine
Kudos to Dr. Leahy! His latest book is a rich resource for practicing clinicians of all stripes—for cognitive therapists and also for those using other models who wish to add some cognitive strategies to their usual methods. This volume provides hands-on, clinically relevant illustrations of the application of cognitive therapy to various clinical problems and populations. Nearly every chapter presents a case example complete with patient-therapist dialogue that brings the therapy to life. -- Jacqueline B. Persons, Ph.D., director, Center for Cognitive Therapy, Oakland, California

The editor of Practicing Cognitive Therapy: A Guide to Interventions, Robert L. Leahy, was educated at Yale University (B.A., M.S., Ph.D.), and at the Center for Cognitive Therapy at the University of Pennsylvania Medical School, where he worked with Dr. Aaron Beck. He has taught at the New School for Social Research, New York University, and Hofstra University, and is currently Clinical Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Cornell University Medical College. In 1985, Dr. Leahy founded the American Institute for Cognitive Therapy in New York City. Director of the Institute since its inception, he is also editor of the Journal of Cognitive Psychotherapy and author of Cognitive Therapy: Basic Principles and Applications.

Since its development thirty-five years ago, the practice of cognitive therapy has been extended well beyond the treatment of depression. It is now effectively used with substance abuse, marital conflict, sexual dysfunction, panic disorders, post-traumatic stress disorders, paranoid delusional disorders, and a variety of other affective, anxiety, and personality disorders. Each chapter in this volume presents state-of-the-art treatment by one of the field's leading practitioners, demonstrating interventions in rich clinical detail for the therapist interested in why the method works and how to apply it. We also see how other theoretical orientations are integrated into the cognitive framework. "One cannot help but be impressed with the ability of these clinicians to adapt the cognitive therapy model to the needs of individual patients," comments the founder of the model, Aaron Beck, who called Robert Leahy's earlier book, Cognitive Therapy: Basic Principles and Applications, "a treasure trove for clinicians, scholars, and researchers."

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