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Are you a citizen? Are you a psychotherapist?

Psychotherapy is an effective treatment for alleviating psychological problems. Across Europe, despite its great diversity, we know which treatments are particularly helpful for which problems, and yet, many questions remain open. Fostering good psychological care for mental difficulties in all European countries is an important aim, and pushing further the limits of our knowledge on psychotherapy is the groundwork for assuring the quality of tomorrow’s services across the continent. Psychotherapy research is the branch of the scientific study of the effectiveness and dissemination of excellence in psychological care.

In Europe, a number of national regulations exists regarding the provision of psychotherapy: how it is funded, what the requirements of becoming a therapist are, and how clients can access specific psychotherapeutic services. To benefit from this diversity, members of the European Chapter of SPR come together on a regular basis to engage in a fruitful and constructive dialogue aiming at exchanges at a high level of expertise, which can also foster new insights for clinicians. European-wide research projects undertaken by SPR members further highlight the diversity and commonalities of psychotherapy in Europe. For the general public, the European Chapter of SPR provides an exciting window into what works in psychotherapy and the efforts of European scholars, clinicians, and scientist-practitioners to understand how it works.

Are you a researcher?

The European Chapter of the Society for Psychotherapy Research is a community of researchers and researcher-clinicians. At annual conferences, psychotherapy researchers from universities and institutes across the continent actively share and further develop their innovative research methods, collaborate in various research initiatives, including large international projects. Researchers from other disciplines are warmly welcome to join, bringing in valuable alternative perspectives on mental disorders and their treatment. Such views involve (but are not limited to) research in psychopathology and clinical psychology, developmental psychology, psychiatry, as well as neurosciences. SPR’s strong focus on a high level of methodology and expertise in studying change in psychotherapy is perceived as an umbrella which may accommodate many different theoretical perspectives, clinical practices and patient populations.

Early career researchers will find in SPR a community where they can reflect on their projects, get valuable advice from peers, and foster cooperation between teams across the continent. The European Chapter of SPR reflects these activities well in its specific method workshops, webinars and conferences held in Europe. SPR’s goals are accomplished in an inspiring and stimulating atmosphere, focusing on creating and maintaining an environment where psychotherapy research can thrive and deliver more robust, clinically relevant and applicable results.

The European Chapter of the Society for Psychotherapy Research invites all colleagues actively involved in research relevant to the field of psychotherapy to join a vibrant scientific community.

Are you a representative of a health provider or of a funding organization?

According to the World Health Organization, more than 83 million people in Europe currently suffer from at least one psychiatric disorder, and the number is likely to increase in the near future. In fact, mental health problems already are the main cause of disability and reason for early retirement in many countries, significantly impacting on their economies, and accounting for about 20% of the burden of disease in Europe, with depression and anxiety disorders costing about €170 billion per year. The development of effective treatments for psychological disorders and its study, is therefore of paramount economic interest. We know today that bona fide psychotherapeutic intervention is better than no treatment for relieving mental health problems and helping people to better pursue their goals. However, despite this evidence most countries in Europe still do not have health systems that adequately respond to this high demand for effective psychotherapy.

Psychotherapy research is the scientific discipline of studying the efficacy and effectiveness of psychotherapy. While many funding agencies focus on funding randomized controlled trials, there are valid scientific arguments also being developed by SPR members that other designs are at least as potent to study clinically relevant questions: How many hours of therapy are needed to improve mental health and what are the incremental costs of each therapy session in a given context? What are the mechanisms of change in treatments, and how can treatment efficacy be improved? Which dissemination strategy of an evidence-based treatment is best in a given (cultural) context? These questions are of utmost importance and should be addressed in large-scale studies across Europe. Health organizations and funding agencies across Europe can count on members of the European Chapter of SPR to address these, and many other economically and clinically relevant questions in their research. Please contact us!

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