Foundations of Behavioral Therapy

The term "behavior therapy" is applied to many techniques and strategies, some theoretically based and some not, unified by a common goal: the application of learning principles to the treatment of psychopathology. Although treatment paradigms have changed, with the increased use of drug therapy, this classic volume provides important information about traditional treatments involving therapist and patient. In this volume, comprehensive reviews of the main positions in behavior therapy show how orientations differ from each other and provide a forum for the critical evaluation of each.The editor has assigned to each contributor a review of the behavioral therapy position in which he is distinguished and a commentary on one of the other positions. Levis provides an introduction to the history, principles, and theory underlying the field, asking if behavior therapy is the "fourth therapeutic revolution" (after Pinel, Freud, and Community Mental Health). Bradley Bucher and O. Ivar Lovaas are concerned with the application of operant conditioning techniques to child populations. Leonard Krasner reviews the token economy approaches, illustrating how these techniques apply to the adult hospitalized population and to society.Followed by this, Cyril Franks reviews the Pavlovian conditioning approach, while Peter Lang surveys Wolpe’s systematic desensitization. Implosive therapy is viewed by Thomas Stampfl as an attempt to bridge the conditioning and psychoanalytic models; and Julian Rotter, a pioneer in the field, reviews his social learning theory approach. Judson Brown provides an analytic overview to the collection. A comprehensive look at the orientations and treatment techniques that comprise the field of behavior therapy, this book is important reading for clinical psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, and related mental health specialists.

Donald J. Levis is professor of psychology at Binghamton University. He is also Fellow of the American Psychology Association and Charter Fellow of the American Psychological Society. In addition his work has appeared in numerous professional journals such as Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, Journal of Mental Imagery, and Behavior Change.