Written by students who passed Immediately available after payment Read online or as PDF Wrong document? Swap it for free 4.6 TrustPilot
logo-home
Document preview thumbnail
Preview 3 out of 33 pages
Summary

Summary Psychotherapy and Therapeutic Skills | UvA

Document preview thumbnail
Preview 3 out of 33 pages

This comprehensive summary covers the Psychotherapy and Therapeutic Skills course at the University of Amsterdam, compiled from lectures and literature. It systematically explores six major therapeutic approaches: client-centered therapy, psychodynamic therapies, behavior therapy, cognitive therapy, contemplative therapy, and motivational interviewing, along with key techniques and theoretical concepts for each. The well-organized structure with definitions, important concepts, techniques, and comparisons makes it ideal for exam preparation and consolidating your understanding of different therapeutic modalities.

Content preview

Psychotherapy and Therapeutic Skills Summary by Bente Niemeijer




Psychotherapy and Therapeutic Skills
Literature & Lectures
Summary




1/33

,Psychotherapy and Therapeutic Skills Summary by Bente Niemeijer



Content

Client-centered approach _______________________________________________________________________ 3
Definition ____________________________________________________________________________________ 3
Important concepts ___________________________________________________________________________ 3
Techniques ___________________________________________________________________________________ 4
Comparison to other therapies _________________________________________________________________ 5

Psychodynamic therapies _______________________________________________________________________ 6
Definition ____________________________________________________________________________________ 6
Important concepts ___________________________________________________________________________ 6
Techniques ___________________________________________________________________________________ 8
Psychoanalysis ______________________________________________________________________________ 12
Comparison to other therapies ________________________________________________________________ 12

Behavior therapy ______________________________________________________________________________ 13
Definition ___________________________________________________________________________________ 13
Important concepts __________________________________________________________________________ 14
Techniques __________________________________________________________________________________ 15
Comparison to other therapies ________________________________________________________________ 18

Cognitive therapy ______________________________________________________________________________ 18
Definition ___________________________________________________________________________________ 18
Important concepts __________________________________________________________________________ 18
Techniques __________________________________________________________________________________ 20
Comparison to other therapies ________________________________________________________________ 21

Contemplative therapy ________________________________________________________________________ 21
Definition ___________________________________________________________________________________ 21
Important concepts __________________________________________________________________________ 23
Techniques __________________________________________________________________________________ 25
Comparison to other therapies ________________________________________________________________ 27

Motivational interviewing ______________________________________________________________________ 28
Definition ___________________________________________________________________________________ 28
Important concepts __________________________________________________________________________ 29
Techniques __________________________________________________________________________________ 30

Therapeutic conversation skills ________________________________________________________________ 31

List of other therapy approaches _______________________________________________________________ 32

Disclaimer on sources _________________________________________________________________________ 33


2/33

, Psychotherapy and Therapeutic Skills Summary by Bente Niemeijer




Client-centered approach

Definition

Client-centered therapists tend to be spontaneously responsive, accommodating to the requests
of clients whenever possible and are non-directive. The climate of freedom and safety that the
therapists creates is hypothesized to free the actualizing tendency. Client-centered therapy
unseats clinicians as experts on our lives, recognizing instead our self-authority as active agents
of personal and social change.

Important concepts

Rogers theory

Self-actualisation tendency: everyone has an inner drive to develop (even animals and plants)

1) Growth = allowing capacities to develop
a. Integration = integrating new skills and knowledge
b. Limitation = the best possible adaption (therefore a 'disorder' has a function)
c. People make deliberate decisions and choose about values and direction of their
thinking and acting. In this way the individual moves towards an own identity and
an optimal form, but that form is not fixed as a kind of end product
2) We need certain things to self-actualize
a. Social connection with others
b. Good quality of 'experiencing' (the perception and experience process of the
person)
i. As the person is better able to remain aware and process all kinds of
stimuli, coming from themselves and from the environment, without
inhibitions and defenses, the quality of this process increase
c. Unconditional acceptance: receive and experience unconditional positive
attention, acceptance and care from important people in their environment from
an early age
i. In an accepted environment, the person will be able to feel safe and free
and be able to express themselves openly (= 'being yourself'). This
contributes to an increasingly varied and personal world of experience.
ii. Conditional regard: The stronger the conditions the environment sets for
acceptance and the more they deviate from one's own capabilities and
behaviors, the more the person will be in trouble, because there is
incongruence with who someone 'is' and how someone 'should be'
iii. Rogers's idea is that the therapist's behavior toward the patient
compensates for the disruptive behavior of the important people in the
client's environment.


3/33

Document information

Study
Uploaded on
September 10, 2026
Number of pages
33
Written in
2025/2026
Type
Summary
$10.58

Wrong document? Swap it for free Within 14 days of purchase and before downloading, you can choose a different document. You can simply spend the amount again.
Written by students who passed
Immediately available after payment
Read online or as PDF

Sold
0
Followers
0
Items
9
Last sold
4 hours ago



Why students choose Stuvia

Created by fellow students, verified by reviews

Quality you can trust: written by students who passed their tests and reviewed by others who've used these notes.

Didn't get what you expected? Choose another document

No worries! You can instantly pick a different document that better fits what you're looking for.

Pay as you like, start learning right away

No subscription, no commitments. Pay the way you're used to via credit card and download your PDF document instantly.

Student with book image

“Bought, downloaded, and aced it. It really can be that simple.”

Alisha Student

Working on your references?

Create accurate citations in APA, MLA and Harvard with our free citation generator.

Working on your references?

Frequently asked questions