Call for Papers - PCEP Special Issue on Case Studies
We are inviting manuscript submissions for a special issue of Person-Centered and Experiential Psychotherapies (PCEP) on Case Studies.
Case studies are the bridge between practice and research. They provide a method for research in which the complexity of the process and outcome of psychotherapy and counselling can be explored and examined. At the same time, they tell the story of an individual therapeutic experience, offering an opportunity to reflect on and develop theory and practice for experienced and student therapists, academics and practitioners alike. Moreover, case studies provide a medium for enabling potential clients and commissioners of services to gain insight into what actually happens inside the therapy room.
Recent developments in systematic case study methodologies have increased the credibility of case studies as a research method. Indeed this is an area at the cutting edge of psychotherapy research and many PCE scholars are making significant contributions to these developments (e.g. Bohart & Humphreys (2000), Stiles (2007), Elliott et al (2009), Stinkens et al (2009)). Guidelines for publishing good quality case studies are currently in development: see McLeod (2010) for a description of the principles of systematic case study research which form the basis of the proposed guidelines. Journals devoted to case study research have been introduced (e.g. Pragmatic Case Studies in Psychotherapy).
Until now, PCEP has published case studies on an occasional basis. In keeping with the principles of the WAPCEPC, the goal of this Special Issue is to demonstrate the process and outcomes of different forms of practice across the full spectrum of PCE in the format of systematic single case studies.
We invite new case studies that illustrate the diversity of both PCE and the systematic case study format. We hope that practitioners as well as academics will be represented amongst the authors of papers in the Special Issue.
All papers will go through the usual peer-review process for PCEP articles, so revisions may be requested, and acceptance of your paper cannot be guaranteed.
Papers should be no more than 7000 words (including references). In order to do justice to the in-depth nature of a case study, appendices to the case study may be included. These will be made available to readers online.
Susan Stephen will be the guest editor for this special issue. She can be contacted at susan.stephen @ pce-world.org for more information and to discuss your potential contribution. Please contact Susan by 31st October 2012 with your expression of interest in contributing to the Special Issue. Manuscripts should be submitted by 31st July 2013.
Please circulate this invitation to anyone you think may be interested.
References
Bohart, A.C. & Humphreys, C. (2000). A qualitative 'adjudicational' model for assessing psychotherapy outcome. Paper presented at the meeting of the International Society for Psychotherapy Research, Chicago, Illinois.
Elliott, R., Partyka, R., Wagner, J., Alperin, R., Dobrenski, R., Messer, S.B., Watson, J.C. & Castonguay, L.G. (2009). An adjudicated Hermeneutic Single Case Efficacy Design study of experiential therapy for panic/phobia. Psychotherapy Research, 19, 543-57.
McLeod, J. (2010). Case study research in counselling and psychotherapy. London:Sage.
Stiles, W.B. (2007). Theory-building case studies of counselling and psychotherapy. Counselling and Psychotherapy Review, 7, 122-7.
Stinckens, N., Elliott, R. and Leijssen, M. (2009). Bridging the gap between therapy research and practice in a person-centered/experiential therapy training program: the Leuven Systematic Case Study Protocol. Person-Centered and Experiential Psychotherapies, 8, 143-62.