Download - The Safran Lab

suicidal and/or homicidal ideation and/or behavior and (8) inconsistent use of
psychotropic medication within the last year.
Prior to participation, patients are screened for exclusion criteria during a
comprehensive intake procedure that includes an initial phone interview, the completion
of a packet of intake questionnaires, two structured clinical interviews (SCID-II: Spitzer,
Williams & Gibbon, 1987), and an abbreviated Adult Attachment Interview (George,
Kaplan & Main, 1985).
Treatment Conditions
Brief Relational Therapy (BRT: Safran & Muran, 2000). BRT is informed by a
relational!approach (Greenberg & Mitchell, 1984), which has its origins in
psychoanalytic theory and has been influenced by movements in social-constructivism
and intersubjectivity (Hoffman, 1991; Stolorow, 1988). BRT is integrative in nature; it
draws from a number of theoretical traditions, such as interpersonal, self-psychology, and
object-relations (Kiesler, 1986; Levenson, 1991; Strupp & Binder, 1984; Sullivan, 1953)
and integrates principles from contemporary theories on cognition, emotion and
experiential traditions (e.g., Guidano & Liotti, 1983; Greenberg, Rice, & Elliot, 1993;
Perls, 1969; and Rogers, 1951).
The key aspects of the relational model, as defined by Safran and Muran (1995),
emphasize: (1) a "two-person psychology," which focuses on the value of
therapist/patient joint exploration of their contributions to the relationship; (2) the belief
that patients are arbiters of their own experience; (3) the therapist's use of self-disclosure
and Metacommunication to enhance collaborative exploration; and (4) emotional
31