The Strategic Dialogue is a strategy by which one can achieve maximum results with minimum effort. It was developed through a natural evolutionary process from previous treatments for particular pathologies, and is composed of therapeutic stratagems and specific sequences of ad hoc maneuvers constructed for different types of problems. This book represents both the starting and finishing line of all of the research, clinical practice, and managerial consulting performed by professors Giorgio Nardone and Paul Watzlawick over a fifteen year period at the Centro di Terapia Strategica of Arezzo (Strategic Therapy Center). It is the result of the combined efforts and contributions of not only the authors of this book, but also of other colleagues, collaborators, scholars and patients from all over the world, many of whom were often unaware of the help they provided. This work can be referred to as the finishing line because the Strategic Dialogue, an advanced therapeutic method of conducting a therapy session and inducing radical changes rapidly in the patient, represents the culmination of all that has been achieved so far in the field.While reading through the full transcriptions of the cases presented, the reader will immerse oneself fully in Giorgio Nardone's style of work, to be fascinated by the articulate dialogue, carried out through the use of precise strategic plans that are adaptable both to the structure of the problem and also to the peculiar reality of the patient. Moreover the reader will be astonished to discover how, through the use of subtle communicative maneuvers and creative stratagems, patients are lead to rapid and effective therapeutic change.

This important new book details a strategic and systemic model for short-term therapy with adolescent sufferers of anorexia nervosa, a psychopathology that seduces patients into starvation as doctors and family look on with increasing desperation. Supported by the successful treatment of hundreds of cases over the past 30 years, the book is the culmination of a long-term intervention programme developed at the Strategic Therapy Centre of Arezzo, Italy. It begins by outlining the range of different eating disorders, before identifying the specific characteristics that adolescents with anorexia present. The variations of the pathology are then discussed. Not all patients present with the same symptoms; some sufferers over-exercise while others binge eat or self-harm. Substance abuse is also common, either with diuretics or chemicals; others self-induce vomiting. The therapeutic strategy will, of course, differ for each patient. Accessibly written throughout, the book concludes with two cases studies - complete with full transcripts - which illustrate the therapeutic process that allowed the patient to change their patterns of thinking, and the accompanying behaviours. An insightful and invaluable work on this vital topic, the book will be essential reading for any professional working with adolescents presenting with anorexia, as well as the families of sufferers.

This book puts forward a complete picture of Brief Strategic Therapy while defining the theoretical and practical features that distinguish this method from other psychotherapies. The authors present a comprehensive explanation of non-ordinary Mathematical Logic, which underlies brief strategic therapy techniques, to reveal how apparently simple techniques come to solve complex, seemly untreatable problems. This book provides the reader with a detailed description of the techniques applied throughout the treatment, and also explains the strategies, tactics, and techniques employed in reframing people's perceptions, behavior and opinions. This rigorous work is one of Nardone's most important and creative contributions to the evolution of Brief Therapy. It presents the advanced techniques set up for specific pathologies through long-term experimental-empirical research carried out at the Centro di Terapia Strategica of Arezzo, Italy. Case studies are introduced for a better understanding of this approach, followed by a thorough evaluation of the results obtained through on-going experimental-empirical research.

This text presents a picture of contemporary family patterns that might produce problems of social and psychopathologic deviance in adolescents. It is the outcome of the teamwork of 32 researchers and therapists, members of the Centre of Strategic Therapy in Arezzo. This work was put together over a period of five years, where the research-intervention group met on a monthly basis under the author's personal supervision, to put together the data gathered from thousands of cases of disturbed adolescents with the aim of better the application of specific strategic interventions in parent-child problematics. The purpose of this book is to point out clearly how some problems of contemporary adolescents can be triggered off and how they can be prevented or solved. It is meant to be a training text for specialists but it is also reader-friendly and can be appreciated both by parents and children so that both can come to avoid the traps hidden in relationships and their dysfunctional aspects. In other words, the aim is to 'correct' "the best intentions that produce the worst effects".

This groundbreaking volume concentrates on solution-oriented treatment of some of the most difficult pathologies - anorexia, bulimia and vomiting (as a separate category introduced by Nardone et al). The logic and apparent simplicity of the way these complex conditions are treated is truly outstanding. As opposed to a long-drawn psychotherapy, Nardone and his colleagues offer a relatively short period of treatment, consisting of dialogue between the patient and the therapist, and sometimes the patient's family. The patient is also given some "homework" to do in-between the sessions. Rather than looking at the "why" of the situation, this approach looks at "how" the problem manifests itself and what can be done about it.The book starts by outlining the pathologies and the logic behind this type of brief therapy. It then moves on to examine particular case studies and the reader gets immersed in the fascinating dialogue between the therapist and the client. The approach recognises the different needs of each individual but offers some more general and useful practical advice to think about, and to be adapted to each case. There are clarifying comments and subheadings in-between the lines to point out to the reader what the therapist is trying to achieve at that point."In order to solve a problem, we need to understand how the system of perception and reaction towards reality functions in the person s here and now. In other words, we must try to understand how the problem functions, not why it exists. In that sense, we leave behind the search for knowledge based on 'why' for a search of knowledge based on 'how' - going from a search for the causes of a problem to a search for its modes of persistence. This allows the resolving process to evolve from slow, gradual solutions to rapid and effective interventions." -- From the Introduction"

The International Dictionary of Psychotherapy is a systematized compendium of the numerous psychotherapies that have evolved over the past 30 years. With contributions from over 350 experts in the field, it highlights the diverse schools of psychotherapy, tracing their histories and traditions, while underlining their specific strengths in dealing with human behaviours, feelings and perceptions in the contemporary world. The book traces eight principal paradigms: psychodynamic, behavioural, existential-humanistic, body-expression, systemic-relational, cognitive, interactional-strategic and eclectic. It presents to the expert and non-expert reader an array of models that grew from a specific paradigm, sharing the same fundamental epistemology and therapeutic strategies. This is accomplished through a reader-friendly approach that presents clear definitions of the key constructs of each paradigm, and transversal concepts that are common to the diverse practices of psychotherapy. The International Dictionary of Psychotherapy provides a clear picture of the numerous types of psychotherapeutic treatments and their applications, while offering a close examination of the efficacy and evaluative methods developed as a result of numerous debates and research carried out within the psychotherapeutic community. It represents an essential resource for psychotherapeutic and psychoanalytic practitioners and students, regardless of background or creed.

This important new book details a strategic and systemic model for short-term therapy with adolescent sufferers of anorexia nervosa, a psychopathology that seduces patients into starvation as doctors and family look on with increasing desperation. Supported by the successful treatment of hundreds of cases over the past 30 years, the book is the culmination of a long-term intervention programme developed at the Strategic Therapy Centre of Arezzo, Italy. It begins by outlining the range of different eating disorders, before identifying the specific characteristics that adolescents with anorexia present. The variations of the pathology are then discussed. Not all patients present with the same symptoms; some sufferers over-exercise while others binge eat or self-harm. Substance abuse is also common, either with diuretics or chemicals; others self-induce vomiting. The therapeutic strategy will, of course, differ for each patient. Accessibly written throughout, the book concludes with two cases studies - complete with full transcripts - which illustrate the therapeutic process that allowed the patient to change their patterns of thinking, and the accompanying behaviours. An insightful and invaluable work on this vital topic, the book will be essential reading for any professional working with adolescents presenting with anorexia, as well as the families of sufferers.

The International Dictionary of Psychotherapy is a systematized compendium of the numerous psychotherapies that have evolved over the past 30 years. With contributions from over 350 experts in the field, it highlights the diverse schools of psychotherapy, tracing their histories and traditions, while underlining their specific strengths in dealing with human behaviours, feelings and perceptions in the contemporary world. The book traces eight principal paradigms: psychodynamic, behavioural, existential-humanistic, body-expression, systemic-relational, cognitive, interactional-strategic and eclectic. It presents to the expert and non-expert reader an array of models that grew from a specific paradigm, sharing the same fundamental epistemology and therapeutic strategies. This is accomplished through a reader-friendly approach that presents clear definitions of the key constructs of each paradigm, and transversal concepts that are common to the diverse practices of psychotherapy. The International Dictionary of Psychotherapy provides a clear picture of the numerous types of psychotherapeutic treatments and their applications, while offering a close examination of the efficacy and evaluative methods developed as a result of numerous debates and research carried out within the psychotherapeutic community. It represents an essential resource for psychotherapeutic and psychoanalytic practitioners and students, regardless of background or creed.

This book is the result of fifteen years of clinical-research work carried out at the Brief Strategic Centre of Arezzo, Italy, for the development of a continuously improving, efficient and effective treatment of various human problems. The authors put forward a simple yet comprehensive description of the epistemology and genealogy of Brief Strategic Therapy, while emphasizing the most evolved therapeutic interventions for each of the various disorders studied, acquired from the experimental-empirical research carried out in everyday clinical practice. All the phases of the advanced model of Brief Strategic Therapy are covered, revealing the corresponding objectives, strategies and language used in the treatment of various psychological problems. Importance is given to the first treatment session and the use of the Strategic Dialogue. For a better understanding of the model and its application, the book contains specific case examples of the treatment of phobic disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorders, eating disorders, depression, child problems, presumed psychosis and others. In this section, the authors put forward the underlying logic of each specific disorder and its variants, the attempted solutions that maintain and worsen the problem and a step-by-step description of effective therapy. The final part of the book discusses a very controversial issue: the bridging of research and practice. The authors put forward a critical report of the different research approaches used in the study of psychotherapy, followed by a detailed account of the action intervention-research used at the various centres and institutes around the globe that apply the Advanced Brief Strategic Model, together with a description of the future prospects for Brief Strategic Therapy.