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May 12, 2008 -- FROM THE EDITOR:

Announcing the publication of our thirteenth  module Volume 4, Module 2):

Targeting Catholic Rituals as Symptoms of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder: A Cognitive-Behavioral and Psychodynamic, Assimilative Integrationist Approach
by Hector Garcia
with Commentaries by
** Brett Deacon and Elizabeth Nelson  
** James Mandala 

        Editor's note: This module is organized around a case study by Dr. Hector Garcia, conducted while he was a clinical psychology graduate student. Dr. Garcia’s training program afforded him the opportunity to pursue a two-phase, multi-theoretical treatment with Bridget, a single, 21-year-old undergraduate student who at first presented with depression and “scrupulosity,” a condition  involving obsessions and compulsions that center on religious themes.

      The first phase of the treatment involved a manualized, cognitive-behavior therapy approach and similarly oriented supervisor that focused on the obsessive-compulsive symptoms. While the emotionally loaded and frequently unclear distinction between  healthy versus psychopathologically-driven religious practice raised very important ethical and technical challenges for Dr. Garcia’s role as a student therapist, after 27 sessions, Bridget’s obsessions and compulsions had been virtually eliminated. Bridget was then eager to pursue other difficulties, such as the impact of her interpersonal style on her relationships with men. Based on a variety of circumstances, Dr. Garcia then initiated a second phase of treatment with a new, psychoanalytic treatment model and supervisor lasting another 52 sessions, also with promising results.   

       Reflecting on this experience, Dr. Garcia conceptualizes the connection between the two phases within the model of assimilative integration, and he discusses the process of going from a more to a less structured type of treatment.

      Commentaries are provided by Brett Deacon and Elizabeth Nelson, who view the therapy through a cognitive-behavior lens, and James Mandala, Dr. Garcia’s supervisor for the second, psychoanalytic phase of the case, who views the therapy from that perspective. In Dr. Garcia’s response to the commentaries, he includes a distinctive, 5-year quantitative and detailed, qualitative follow-up with Bridget.  

      The whole series presents a unique opportunity to explore the process and impact of different treatment models with the same client and therapist, with implications for both practice and training. 
 
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PCSP is a peer-reviewed, open-access journal and database. It is intended to provide innovative, quantitative and qualitative knowledge about psychotherapy process and outcome, for both researchers and practitioners.

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Call for Papers

** Manuscripts. Two types of manuscripts are desired: those consisting of one or more case studies, and those consisting of case method articles.

** Suggested Author Guidelines. These can be found by clicking on the link Instructions for Authors here or above. Note that we suggest 11 common headings for case study manuscripts:
1. Case Context and Method
2. The Client
3. Guiding Conception with Research and Clinical Experience Support
4. Assessment of the Client's Problems, Goals, Strengths, and History.
5. Formulation and Treatment Plan
6. Course of Therapy
7. Therapy Monitoring and Use of Feedback Information
8. Concluding Evaluation of the Therapy's Process and Outcome
9. References
10. Tables (optional)
11. Figures (optional)
Also note that on the Instructions for Authors page, there are substantive guidelines within each heading. However, these should be viewed as suggestions only, not as requirements.

** Author Policies. For author policies about manuscript submission, copyright, and confidentiality, click on the link for Author Guidelines here or above. 

** Format. In the initial phase of the journal, manuscripts should be submitted if possible as Word documents using the manuscript style guidelines of the American Psychological Association.

** Submitting Manuscripts. During the initial phase of the journal, authors should submit manuscripts by emailing a Word file to the Editor, Daniel Fishman, at DFish96198@aol.com.

** Note: the PCSP web site has an automated method for submitting manuscripts, which will be activated after the initial phase of the journal.

** Questions. Any questions about manuscript ideas or formats should be addressed to the Editor at DFish96198@aol.com.

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