Interpersonal Reconstructive Therapy Promoting Change in Nonresponders

Drawing on and extending the concepts presented in her earlier Interpersonal Diagnosis and Treatment of Personality Disorders, leading scientist-practitioner Lorna Smith Benjamin now presents a powerful, evidence-based therapeutic model that is applicable to a broad cross-section of the "nonresponder" population. At the heart of interpersonal reconstructive therapy (IRT) is a clearly explained method of case conceptualization that links presenting problems to longstanding patterns in interpersonal relationships; targets the motivational factors that maintain current difficulties; helps therapist and client collaborate to stay focused on key therapeutic goals; and facilitates the learning of new patterns through a variety of carefully planned interventions. Solidly grounded in theory and research, the volume is illustrated with rich clinical examples that bring core principles to life.

Lorna Smith Benjamin, PhD, received her doctorate in Psychology from the University of Wisconsin in 1960. Four years of postdoctoral clinical training in the University of Wisconsin Department of Psychiatry were followed by several years of part-time work as a research consultant. Starting in 1971, she taught principles of human development to medical students and instructed psychiatry residents and psychology interns in interviewing, assessment, and psychotherapy for adults. She maintained a large clinical practice, as she simultaneously developed the concepts and technology for the Structural Analysis of Social Behavior, her method for objectifying social perceptions and internalized representations. In 1987, Dr. Benjamin left a position as Full Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin to become Full Professor in the Department of Psychology and Adjunct Full Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Utah. Presently, she is Co-Director of the Interpersonal Reconstructive Therapy Clinic at the University of Utah Neuropsychiatric Institute. She is the author of [i]Interpersonal Diagnosis and Treatment of Personality Disorders, Second Edition[/i].