How to Fail as a Therapist

Book excerpt: Depending upon which study you read, between 20 and 57% of psychotherapy patients do not return after their initial session. Another 37 to 45% only attend therapy twice. A follow-up study on dropouts found most clinicians had no idea why their patients had terminated, whereas their clients could define very specific "therapeutic errors." Clients who drop out early display poor treatment outcomes, over-utilize mental health services, and demoralize clinicians. It doesn't have to be that way Well-researched strategies reduce dropout rates and increase positive treatment outcomes. How to Fail as a Therapist details the 50 most common errors therapists make, and how to avoid them. Therapists will learn practical, helpful steps for avoiding such common errors as not recognizing one's limitations, performing incomplete assessments, ignoring science, ruining the client relationship, setting improper boundaries, terminating improperly, therapist burnout, and more.