Reactivity and stability in facial expressions as an indicator of therapeutic alliance strength.

Objective: Aspects of our emotional state are constantly being broadcast via our facial expressions. Psychotherapeutic theories highlight the importance of emotional dynamics between patients and therapists for an effective therapeutic relationship. Two emotional dynamics suggested by the literature are emotional reactivity (i.e., when one person is reacting to the other) and emotional stability (i.e., when a person has a tendency to remain in a given emotional state). Yet, little is known empirically about the association between these dynamics and the therapeutic alliance. This study investigates the association between the therapeutic alliance and the emotional dynamics of reactivity and stability, as manifested in the facial expressions of patients and therapists within the session. Methods: Ninety-four patients with major depressive disorder underwent short-term treatment for depression (N = 1256 sessions). Results: Both therapist reactivity and stability were associated with the alliance, across all time spans. Patient reactivity was associated with the alliance only in a short time span (1 s). Conclusions: These findings may potentially guide therapists in the field to attenuate not only their emotional reaction to their patients, but also their own unique presence in the therapy room.

"Picking up the pieces": Patients' retrospective reflections of rupture resolution episodes during treatment.

Objective: Although theorists and researchers have stressed the importance of rupture resolution episodes for successful treatment process and outcome, little is known about patients' retrospective reflections about rupture resolution. Aim: The overarching goal of the present study was to use a mixed-method approach to examine patients' retrospective reflections on the frequency, types, and consequences of rupture resolution episodes and the association between rupture resolution episodes and patients' attachment orientation and treatment outcome. Method: Thirty-eight patients diagnosed with major depressive disorder (MDD) were interviewed, on average three years after termination, about their experiences of ruptures in short-term dynamic psychotherapy. Results: Thirty patients reported having experienced at least one rupture, with patients who showed less improvement in depressive symptoms more likely to report having had a rupture. Ruptures were judged as having been successfully resolved for 13 of these patients; suggesting that patients with a high level of attachment anxiety were less likely to be judged as having had a successful resolution. Patients whose ruptures were successfully resolved with the therapist's help reported better treatment process and outcome than patients whose ruptures were not successfully resolved. Conclusion: Results highlight the importance of hearing patients' perspectives on ruptures, rupture resolution, and treatment outcome.

Is alliance therapeutic in itself? It depends.

The alliance has been a leading player in the long-running debate on whether therapeutic change is driven by factors common across distinct treatments or by treatment-specific factors. The present study disentangled between-patients differences in alliance strength from within-patient changes to investigate whether two treatments with identical goals but based on different roles of alliance differ in the within-patient effect of alliance on outcome. Both treatments are aimed at improving the patients' interpersonal abilities, but in the supportive treatment (ST) the alliance is the main specific factor, whereas in the supportive-expressive treatment (SET) it is conceptualized as a common factor. One hundred patients were randomized to receive either ST or SET. Treatment outcome and alliance were assessed weekly. Treatment condition significantly moderated the effect of within-patient changes in the alliance (relative to its mean) on subsequent treatment outcome, so that any increases in state-like alliance predicted lower levels of subsequent depressive symptoms in ST than in SET. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Achieving successful resolution of alliance ruptures: for whom and when?

Contemporary theories and the empirical literature stress the importance of successful resolution of alliance ruptures for the process and outcome of treatment. Yet, little empirical work has examined what leads to successful resolutions. The aim of the present study was to examine which patients are more likely to achieve successful resolutions of ruptures and under which circumstances.Sixty-five patients completed measures assessing their trait-like pretreatment characteristics (alliance expectations and general attachment orientation), and state-like changes in treatment (working alliance, therapist serving as an attachment figure, and the implementation of common factor techniques). Successful resolutions were coded using observer behavioral coding at four time points.State-like changes, but not trait-like characteristics significantly contributed to successful resolution. Stronger working alliance and the therapist as an attachment figure, and the implementation of common factors techniques were found to contribute to successful resolutions.The current findings emphasize the importance of the process that occurs within treatment, and the therapeutic context in which the resolution process take place for the ability to achieve successful resolutions.

A randomized controlled trial for identifying the most suitable treatment for depression based on patients' attachment orientation.

OBJECTIVE: Many active treatments exist for major depressive disorder (MDD), but little is known about their differential effects for various subpopulations of patients to guide precision medicine. This is the first randomized controlled trial (RCT) designed to identify differential treatment effects based on patients' attachment orientations. We tested an a priori preregistered hypothesis of the potential moderating effect of patients' attachment orientation on the outcome of supportive therapy (ST) versus supportive-expressive therapy (SET). METHODS: The RCT was conducted between 2015 and 2021. Individuals with MDD were randomly assigned to 16-week ST or SET. The predefined primary outcome measure was the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression. Hypotheses were formulated and preregistered before data collection. RESULTS: One hundred patients with MDD were enrolled, 57% women, average age 31.2 (SD = 8.25). Data were analyzed using the intention-to-treat approach. Our hypothesis that attachment anxiety is a significant moderator of treatment outcome was supported (B = -0.09, p = .016): Patients with higher levels of attachment anxiety showed greater treatment efficacy following SET than ST. Although the hypothesis regarding a potential moderating effect of avoidant attachment was not supported, sensitivity analyses revealed that individuals with disorganized attachment orientation (higher scores on both anxious and avoidant attachment) benefited more from SET than from ST (B = -0.07, p = .04). CONCLUSION: The findings support the clinical utility of patients' attachment orientation in selecting the most suitable treatment for individuals and demonstrate the methodological utility of RCTs predesigned to test theoretically based models of personalized treatment. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

"We can work it out": Working through termination ruptures.

Supportive-expressive (SE) psychodynamic treatment is based on the identification of and working through the patient's signature core conflictual relationship theme. According to the SE framework, when termination is anticipated, separation conflict arises, and the actualization of the patient's interpersonal wish in the relationship with the therapist is no longer possible. The disactualization of the patient's wish in the relationship with the therapist may cause patients to regress to their maladaptive prototype responses (Nof, Leibovich, & Zilcha-Mano, 2017), which may manifest as a rupture in the therapeutic alliance. The present work integrates constructs based on the SE framework, specifically the disactualization of the patient's wish at the end of treatment, with the framework of alliance ruptures and their resolution (Safran & Muran, 2000). We propose a conceptual clinical model to guide therapists in the successful resolution of alliance ruptures, which are the result of the disactualization of the patient's interpersonal wish. We propose a two-stage process to achieve successful resolution of termination ruptures: (a) identification of termination ruptures and (b) addressing and resolving termination ruptures. For each stage, we propose practice-based guidelines and steps to follow. We demonstrate the proposed guidelines based on the case study of a patient with major depressive disorder. We used three sources of information from the case study: verbal transcripts of the therapy sessions, questionnaires, and semistructured posttreatment interviews. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).