8th PCE Conference, Norwich: Press Release 7th July 2008

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The idea of that Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is more effective than other types of therapy is a myth, according to leading psychotherapy experts attending a major conference at the University of East Anglia (UEA) today.

The US and UK researchers will present data and critical analyses that debunk the widespread belief in the superior effectiveness of CBT.

The major international conference will be hosted from July 6-10 by the University of East Anglia's Centre for Counselling Studies. Organised on behalf of the World Association for Person-Centered and Experiential Psychotherapy and Counselling, it is the first time the conference has been held in England and 400 delegates are attending from across the world.

Professors Mick Cooper and Robert Elliott (both University of Strathclyde), William B Stiles (Miami University) and Art Bohart (Saybrook Graduate School) will issue the following joint statement today (Monday July 7 2008):

"The government, the public and even many health officials have been sold a version of the scientific evidence that is not based in fact, but is instead based on a logical error. This is how it works: 1) More academic researchers subscribe to a CBT approach than any other. 2) These researchers get more research grants and publish more studies on the effectiveness of CBT. 3) This greater number of studies is used to imply that CBT is more effective.

"This is a classic example of the logical fallacy known as ‘argument from ignorance' ie the absence of evidence is taken as evidence of absence.

A proposed intervention - Executive Summary

• Person-centred/experiential (PC/E) counselling and psychotherapy is a family of psychological therapies that can help clients develop moresatisfying and fulfilling lives through the provision of an empathic, nonjudgmental and empowering therapeutic relationship.
• Person-centred/experiential therapy enables clients to take responsibility for their psychological wellbeing and development, and is closely aligned to a patient centred healthcare agenda.
• Person-centred/experiential practice is an empirically-supported approach to therapy which is demonstrably effective for a range ofpsychological difficulties, including depression and mixed anxiety and depression, substance abuse, post-traumatic stress disorder andadjustment to life events.
• Meta-analyses indicate that person-centred/experiential therapy is equivalent in overall effectiveness to other therapeutic approaches, including CBT.
• Person-centred counselling is most obviously appropriate for delivery atTiers 2 and 3, with some current and potentially efficacious application at Tier 4. More focused PC/E interventions are particularly suited to Tiers 3 and 4 and the use of person-centred counselling skills suited for widespread delivery at Tier 1.
• Person-centred counselling is well established both in the NHS and across a variety of settings in Scotland. Over the past 11 years, more than 25,000 patients have made use of this service in Lanarkshire alone.
• A large and skilled workforce of PC/E practitioners exists in Scotland, with over a thousand graduates of Scottish person-centred diploma courses in the past decade.
• Professional standards for counselling require all PC/E therapists to have regular clinical supervision and to demonstrate a commitment to continuing professional development and ethical practice.
• Person-centred/experiential therapies can make a significant and valuable contribution to the diversity and effectiveness of mental healthcare provision in Scotland.

Mick Cooper, Professor of Counselling, University of Strathclyde, John McLeod, Professor of Counselling, University of Abertay, Robert Elliott, Professor of Counselling, University of Strathclyde, Dave Mearns, Professor of Counselling, University of Strathclyde, Jo Hilton, Secretary, Person-Centred Therapy, Scotland, Susan McGinnis, Co-ordinator, Counselling in Schools Project, Glasgow, Susan Cornforth, Counsellor in private practice, Kevin McGeever, Director, Lanarkshire Therapeutic Counselling Service, Tracey Sanders, Lecturer in Counselling, University of Strathclyde, Lorna Carrick, Lecturer in Counselling, University of Strathclyde, Mike Hough, Senior Lecturer in Counselling, University of Strathclyde, Ewan Gillon, Senior Lecturer in Psychology, Glasgow Caledonian University

Building on significant increases in readership over the past two years, Person-Centered and Experiential Psychotherapies has now been accepted for coverage in PsycINFO, the abstracting and indexing service of the American Psychological Association. PsycINFO is the most important abstracting service in the social sciences and is distributed worldwide, primarily via the PsycINFO online database, but also in the form of Psychological Abstracts. Journals are selected for coverage if they are archival (that is, publish articles of cumulative, lasting value), scholarly, peer-reviewed, regularly published, and include English language titles, abstracts and keywords. The PsycINFO database includes more than 2.3 million records, dating back to 1880, and is updated weekly.

Although over 2000 journals are covered, only about half are covered completely. Thus, we are pleased to report that PCEP will receive 100% coverage. Furthermore, the coverage will be retroactive to the journal's 2002 inception, meaning that abstracts of all articles published to date in PCEP will be indexed and available.

Clearly, this is an important step toward wider dissemination and influence for PCEP, one that has been in the planning stage for some time. It will result in a significantly greater visibility and status for the journal, and will directly benefit authors whose universities use indexing as a measure of scientific quality.