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Researchers Anke Ehlers, Jonathon Bisson, David Clark, Mark Creamer, Steven Pilling, David Richards, Paula Schnurr, Stuart Turner, and William Yule have finally done it! They slayed the “dodo.” Not the real bird of course–that beast has been extinct since the mid to late 17th century but rather the “dodo bird” conjecture first articulated by Saul Rozenzweig, Ph.D. in 1936. The idea that all treatment approaches work about equally well has dogged the field–and driven proponents of “specific treatments for specific disorders” positively mad. In a soon to be published article in Clinical Psychology Review, the authors claim that bias, overgeneralization, lack of transparency, and poor judgement account for the finding that “all therapeutic approaches work equally well for people with a diagnosis of PTSD” reported in a meta-analysis by Benish, Imel, & Wampold (2008).
I guess this means that a public admission by me, Wampold, and other common factors researchers is in order…or maybe not! Right now, we are writing a response to the article. All I can say at this point is, “unbelievable!” As soon as it becomes available, you’ll find it right here on this blog. I’ll be drawing inspiration from Saul Rosenzweig who passed away in 2004. It was such an honor to meet him. Still working at 96 years of age.
I can’t wait to see the article. I’m wanting to see how one article will impact the under-reviewed literature of 40 years that the dodo-bird effect is real. Doesn’t change what we’re doing. Looking forward to the article and your response.