Brief Therapy Strategies with Individuals and Couples

by Jon Carlson and Len Sperry
Type: Hardcover

More than 100 books on brief therapy have been published in the past decade. . . . Although the number of publications is remarkable, their clinical utility has generally not been all that remarkable. Ironically, some of the longest books on brief therapy do little more than ponderously review theories of [brief therapy], while the very short books say little more than that brief therapy has great promise and applicability. Few offer much information or guidance about actually doing brief therapy, about actually applying its stategies in day-to-day clinical practice with adults.

–From the Editors’ Introduction

Now, setting a new standard for publishing in the area of brief therapy, there’s Brief Therapy Strategies with Individuals and Couples, a sourcebook that brings together in a single place all the most effective strategies and interventions–across orientations–for time-effective treatment of individuals and couples. Each strategy is carefully described and then clearly illustrated with clinical case materials.

The chapter authors include 20 of today’s leaders in the field of brief therapy–Frank Dattilio, Michael Hoyt, Luciano L’Abate, Arnold Lazarus, Wade Luquet, Leigh McCullough, Scott Miller, and David Scharff among them.

Unique both in its scope and its clear clinical focus, Brief Therapy Strategies with Individuals and Couples will prove an invaluable resource for all clinicians seeking to maximize not just their clients’ time, but also their own. Readers across the field will benefit from Carlson and Sperry’s decision to gather and distill the best treatment strategies across orientations–cognitive-behavioral, multimodal, constructivist, Ericksonian, psychodynamic, psychoeducational, and pharmacological–into a single, well-organized, case-filled volume.

Critical Acclaim
This groundbreaking book addresses a major need of almost all practicing therapists: efficacious brief therapy. Representing a wide range of counseling perspectives, the contributors to the book explain, with the help of familiar clients, how therapy can be shortened using their particular approach. The value of this book is in its clarity and detail. Practitioners may select practices that are compatible with their own beliefs and immediately put them to use in their offices. If you are in practice, this is a book you should not miss.

–William Glasser, M.D.
Author of Reality Therapy in Action