ABSTRACT
We are writing this book at an interesting time in the context of the therapeutic professions as a whole. Statutory regulation is currently underway, having started in 2009 for psychologists and with pending regulation for psychotherapists at present under heated debate. The UK Department of Health has favoured the extension of its Health Professions Council (HPC) as the statutory body to regulate the helping professions and is also supporting the development of National Occupational Standards (NOS) and the identi®cation of competencies for different therapeutic modalities. At present these modalities include cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), family and systemic therapy, psychodynamic and psychoanalytic therapy, and humanistic therapy. The NOS identi®ed for each of these named modalities have so far been ®eld tested to ascertain applicability. A further category termed `cross-modality NOS' has been proposed to bring together some of the key competencies as highlighted in the context of research on speci®c modalities (Skills for Health, 2008). While we value the idea of transparency and precision in our work, our view is that doing psychotherapy successfully goes beyond any simplistic use of a set of competencies. In this book our interest is in the articulation of a `cross-modality' focus based in a re¯exive approach to therapeutic work, and promoting a form of psychotherapy that will always be contextually informed by the person of the therapist, the person of the client, and the broader social frame in which problems are presented. We also highlight the process-based nature of this activity and aim to articulate how it plays out in practice.
