What can therapists learn from the CIA? Experts versus the "Wisdom of the Crowd"

May 6, 2014 By scottdm Leave a Comment

What can we therapists learn from the CIA? In a phrase, “When it comes to making predictions about important future events, don’t rely on experts!”

After a spate of embarrassing, high-profile intelligence failures, a recent story showed how a relatively small group of average people made better predictions about critical world events than highly-trained analysts with access to classified information. The four-year study, known as the Good Judgment Project, adds to mounting evidence regarding the power of aggregating independent guesses of regular folks–or what is known as, “the wisdom of the crowd.”

When it comes to therapy, multiple scientific studies show that inviting the “wisdom of the crowd” into treatment as much as doubles effectiveness, while simultaneously cutting drop out and deterioration rates.

Whatever your profession, work setting, or preferred therapeutic approach, the process involves formally soliciting feedback from clients and then comparing the results to empirically established benchmarks. Getting started is easy:

Download and begin using two free, easy to use tools–one that charts progress, the other the quality of the therapeutic relationship–both of which are listed on SAMHSA’s National Registry of Evidence Based Programs and Practices.
Next, access cutting edge technology available on the web, smartphones, and tablets, that makes it easy to anonymously compare the progress of your clients to effective patterns of practice worldwide.

You can learn more at: www.whatispcoms.com. Plus, the ICCE–the world’s largest online community of professionals using feedback to enhance clinical judgment–is available at no cost to support you in your efforts.

While you’re at it, be sure and join fellow practitioners from the US, Canada, Europe, and Australia for the “Training of Trainers” or two-day FIT Implementation Intensive coming up this August in Chicago. You’ll not only learn how to use the measures, but also tap into the collective wisdom of clients and practitioners around the globe. Space is limited, and we are filling up quickly, so don’t wait to register.

Good News and Bad News about Psychotherapy

March 25, 2014 By scottdm 3 Comments

Have you seen this month’s issue of, “The National Psychologist?” If you do counseling or psychotherapy, you should read it. The headline screams, “Therapy: No Improvement for 40 Years.” And while I did not know the article would be published, I was not surprised by the title nor it’s contents. The author and associate editor, John Thomas, was summarizing the invited address I gave at the recent Evolution of Psychotherapy conference.

Fortunately, it’s not all bad news. True, the outcomes of psychotherapy have not been improving. Neither is there much evidence that clinicians become more effective with age and experience. That said, we can get better. Results from studies of top performing clinicians point the way. I also reviewed this exciting research in my presentation.
Even if you didn’t attend the conference, you can see it here thanks to the generosity of the Milton H. Erickson Foundation. Take a look at the article and video, then drop me a line and let me know what you think. To learn more, you can access a variety of articles for free in the scholarly publications section of the website.

Click here to access the article from the National Psychologist about Scott Miller’s speech at the Evolution of Psychotherapy Conference in Anaheim, California (US)

Excellence in Amsterdam: The 2013 ACE Conference

June 6, 2013 By scottdm Leave a Comment

My how time flies! Nearly three weeks have passed since hundreds of clinicians, researchers, and educators met in Amsterdam, Holland for the 2013 “Achieving Clinical Excellence.” Participants came from around the globe–Holland, the US, Germany, Denmark, Italy, Russia, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, New Zealand, Romania, Australia, France–for three days of presentations on improving the quality and outcome of behavioral healthcare. Suffice it to say, we had a blast!

The conference organizers, Dr. Liz Pluut and Danish psychologist Susanne Bargmann did a fantastic job planning the event, organizing a beautiful venue (the same building where the plans for New York City were drafted back in the 17th century), coordinating speakers (36 from around the globe), arranging meals, hotel rooms, and handouts.

Dr. Pluut opened the conference and introduced the opening plenary speaker, Dr. K. Anders Ericsson, the world’s leading researcher and “expert on expertise.” Virtually all of the work being done by me and my colleagues at the ICCE on the study of excellence and expertise among therapists is based on the three decades of pioneering work done by Dr. Ericsson. You can read about our work, of course, in several recent articles: Supershrinks, The Road to Mastery, or the latest The Outcome of Psychotherapy: Past, Present and Future (which appeared in the 50th anniversary edition of the journal, Psychotherapy).

Over the next several weeks, I’ll be posting summaries and videos of many of the presentations, including Dr. Ericsson. One key aspect of his work is the idea of “Deliberate Practice.” Each of the afternoon sessions on the first day focused on this important topic, describing how clinicians, agency managers, and systems of care can apply it to improve their skills and outcome.

The first of these presentations was by psychologist Birgit Valla–the leader of Family Help, a mental health agency in Stange, Norway–entitled, “Unreflectingly Bad or Deliberately Good: Deciding the Future of Mental Health Services.” Grab a cup of coffee and listen in…

Oh, yeah…while on the subject of excellence, here’s an interview that just appeared in the latest issue of the UK’s Therapy Today magazine:

Excellence in therapy: An Interview with Scott D. Miller, Ph.D. by Colin Feltham.

It starts on page 32.