Week 1 Post 3: Psychological Therapies

    I began the course with little information about clinical psychology and wasn't aware of the different models of therapy. The Biological and Behavioral Models were self-explanatory, however the Psychodynamic and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy were completely new. Analyses and evaluations for each model (such as the SORCK Analysis and Cognitive Restructuring) were most interesting to me because it was made evident that much of analyzing behavior was built on educated guesses and many therapies rely on the client breaking and then redirecting their regular thought processes. In order to do both (analyze and treat with therapy), it is important to understand the environment around the client, and knowing what are positive and negative factors to help guide the client to healthier behaviors and thoughts.

    Upon learning the Four Foundational Models of Therapy and the four Abnormal Models, I noticed that the names were very similar, but the definitions at least slightly different. For example, the Psychodynamic Therapy of the foundational models is defined as understanding the relationship between the client and the therapist, but the definition for the abnormal Psychodynamic Model is the illness from repressed emotions and thoughts from past experiences. Why give such similar names to different models? And even though the Abnormal Models seem to be more specific and include a more in-depth analysis, they are not considered "foundational". What makes the abnormal models "abnormal"? Does it mean that given in the definitions of the abnormal models, it is less likely to see/understand the specific situations (such as issues stemming from past experiences) when analyzing behavior? And does the type of therapy used change depending on whether a client is analyzed with a foundational or abnormal model? Is it possible to use both for a more direct answer to which therapy to use? Maybe the similar names of the foundational and abnormal models are connected through starting with a broader analysis (foundational) and then continuing to a more specific (abnormal).