The Silent Language of Psychotherapy: Social Reinforcement of Unconscious Processes Book

The third edition of this classic work, a documented study of the critical role of covert communication, persuasion, and social reinforcement taking place between therapist and patient, offers a simple and theoretically sound model of therapeutic process. Beier and Young integrate the dynamic processes of unconscious motivation with behavioral principles in a theory of psychotherapy that demonstrates the social reinforcement of unconscious processes. This new edition teaches the practitioner how to view patient problems as evidence of early "patterns" of behavior that give the patient a secret sense of "deliciousness." Even when a pattern of patient behavior appears to have no element of reward, the authors demonstrate methods to assist the patient in understanding the familiar comforts of apparently self-destructive behavior. The patient's subtle cues, especially those observed in nonverbal communication, are the key to understanding the patient's conflicting motives. An experienced therapist, therefore, can "observe" the unconscious by understanding the nature of the patient's nonverbal cues within the framework of the patient's silent rules and with a knowledge of the patient's preferred patterns. Significantly revised and expanded, this edition devotes attention to new areas of practice facing today's therapist. There are two new chapters, one on managed care and the clinical impact of the control of healthcare delivery, the other on biological intervention and issues related to psychotropic medication. The chapters on nonverbal communication and the ethical problems of behavior control have been expanded to integrate recent research and contemporary issues. Designed both as a guide for practicing professional therapists and as a comprehensive text for many levels of training, this book makes a unique and important contribution to effective treatment. CONTENTS Preface to the Third Edition. Acknowledgments. 1. Introduction and Overview. 2. The Anatomy of a Message: Structure and Motivation. 3. Developing Patterns: Choosing Responses to the Environment. 4. Information-Gathering Process in Psychotherapy. 5. The Use of Conventions. 6. Interventions in psychotherapy. 7. Labeling the Therapist's Activity. 8. Content Choices in the Psychotherapeutic Hour. 9. Extratherapeutic Incidents. 10. Technical Problems in the Therapeutic Process. 11. Communication Analysis in Family Group and Group Therapy. 12. The Child's Communication in Therapy. 13. The Changing Landscape of Psychotherapy Practice: Managed Care. 14. The Therapist as a Consultant. 15. Supervision in Communication Analytic Therapy. 16. Nonverbal Communication in Psychotherapy. 17. The Ethical Problems of Control of Behavior. 18. Pills and Caring Talk. 19. Summary and Conclusions: Being Asocial in Social Places; Giving the Patient a New Experience. References. Author Index. Subject IndexRead More