What and what is strategic brief therapy?

Brief strategic psychotherapy or strategic brief therapy is a Therapeutic intervention model mainly focused on solutions, that leaves aside or does not delve into the origin of psychological discomfort or in its cause.

Brief strategic therapy is a therapeutic approach developed by the Italian psychiatrist Giorgio Nardone and his team at the Diarapia Strategica Center in Arezzo, Italy. This approach focuses on finding solutions to specific problems and is considered a short -term therapy that can last between 5 and 20 sessions.

Content

• Origin of strategic brief therapy
  • The bases of the strategic approach
• What is strategic brief therapy?
• How to Cavo the intervention in Brief Strategic Therapy
• Strategic dialogue
• What are therapeutic aphorisms and how they are used in brief strategic therapy
  • References

Origin of strategic brief therapy

This approach is based on the communication theory of the Palo Alto School, of the cyber-constructivist epistemology of H. von foerster and e. von Glasersfeld and hypnosis studies and suggestion of M. Erickson.

Paul Watzlawick and Giorgio Nardone, recognized Italian representative of the MRI, initiated their collaboration that led them to the most modern approaches that are known today of strategic brief therapy through advanced therapeutic technology that has demonstrated surprising efficiency and efficiency in its application to the most disabling and persistent pathology forms of pathology.

This new approach defends that Although human problems and suffering can be complex and persistent, therefore they do not require long and complicated solutions. It is proposed to be able to solve complicated human problems through seemingly simple solutions. The techniques used are well -constructed strategic interventions, that well applied, can effectively solve and in short time most psychological disorders.

It's about producing a change of modalities according to which the person builds their own personal and interpersonal reality. Consequently, strategic brief therapy represents a radical and lasting intervention and not a superficial and merely symptomatic therapy. It is an original approach to the formation and solution of human problems that is based on theoretical foundations and applicative practice in constant evolution on the basis of empirical research.

The bases of the strategic approach

• Psychological problems are the result of the individual's reality perception system.
• To solve a problem you just have to understand how it works and maintains in the present, without the need to look for the cause in the past.
• The arbitrary attempts of solution put into practice by the patient or their relatives, are usually those who maintain the problem or generate new problems.

Giorgio Nardone wrote three books in collaboration with Watzlawick, in addition to promoting an Institute for Research and Therapy in Italy, which was founded in 1989: the Di Center Di Therapy Strategic (CTS). Currently, Nardone exercises as director of this clinic and is currently recognized as one of the most significant researchers at the Palo Alto School for continuing to the development of brief therapy with a cyber approach.

In terms of communication, Nardone has developed advanced techniques that have proven effective in consulting, coaching, motivational and workproofing work practices.

Nardone defines the strategic brief therapy very well in these words "It is the method of solving very complicated human problems with seemingly very simple solutions. It is based on logic and not on a psychiatric base.”Giorgio Nardone.

What is strategic brief therapy?

The arbitrary attempts of solution put into practice by the patient or their relatives, are usually those who maintain the problem or generate new problems. It is a Brief therapeutic intervention (Understanding by brief less than 20 sessions) that is, on the one hand, to eliminate the symptoms or dysfunctional behavior by which the person has resorted to therapy, and on the other hand, in produce a change of the modalities according to which the person builds their own personal and interpersonal reality.

Strategic brief therapy is a creative and original way to focus the formation and solution of human problems in a psychological consultation.

Therefore, strategic brief therapy represents a radical and lasting intervention and not a superficial and merely symptomatic therapy. Unlike traditional psychological theories, a strategic therapist does not use any theory about "human nature" and, therefore, much less definitions related to "normality" or psychic "pathology.". This approach is mainly interested in "functionality" or "dysfunctionality" of behavior of people and their way of relating to their own reality.

When we are facing a difficulty (be it personal, relational or professional), the first thing we try to do to solve it is to use a strategy that seems productive, perhaps because it has worked in the past for a similar situation. If the strategy chosen works, the difficulty is resolved shortly obvious, or the only possible. But the more we apply this strategy the initial difficulty seems not only irresoluble but even complicates, becoming a true structured problem.

In many cases, they are the same efforts that the person exercises to achieve a change, paradoxically, are the ones that maintain the problem, that is: "the"tried solutions”Proven by the subject and by the people around them to try to solve the problem, they end up feeding it and determining its persistence. These attempts of solution are often recognized by the person as non -functional but, despite that, she fails to do otherwise, thus developing a deep -rooted confidence in the possibility of a change of the problematic situation itself.

How brief therapy works and solutions

From a strategic point of view, therefore, To change a problematic situation, it is not necessary to reveal the original causes (aspect on which, on the other hand, we would not have any possibility of intervention), but work on how this remains in the present, thanks to the repetition of the "tried solution" adopted. For this reason, the Strategic therapist focuses, from the beginning of the therapy, on the rupture of this vicious circle that was established between the solutions attempted and the persistence of the problem, working on the present more than the past, how the problem works rather than about the "why" exists, about the search for solutions rather than the causes.

The ultimate objective of the therapeutic intervention thus transforms into the displacement of the observation point of the subject of its rigid and dysfunctional original position (which is manifested through the solutions attempted) towards a more elastic and functional perspective, with greater possibilities of choice. In this way the person acquires the possibility of facing the problem without stiffness and without stereotypes, enjoying the advantage of having developed various resolution strategies.

To achieve this objective in the most effective and fast as possible way, The strategic intervention is active and prescriptive and must produce results from the first session. If this does not happen, the therapist is in a position to modify his own strategy based on the client's responses, until he finds the ideal strategy to guide the person to the definitive change of their own problematic situation.

How to Cavo the intervention in Brief Strategic Therapy

Brief strategic therapy is carried out in a series of sessions that usually last between 60 and 90 minutes each. During therapy, the therapist works with the client to understand his specific problem and find effective solutions to overcome it.

Here is an example of how a strategic brief therapy session could be carried out:

1. Problem evaluation: The therapist and the client identify and evaluate the specific problem that the client is experiencing.
2. Identification of thought and behavior patterns: The therapist helps the client to understand how his patterns of thought and behavior are contributing to the problem.
3. Inadequate patterns challenge: The therapist challenges the inappropriate patterns of the client through persuasive and hypnotic communication questions and techniques.
4. Search for solutions: The therapist and the client work together to find effective solutions to the problem using specific strategic therapy techniques.
5. Strategic intervention: An action plan with detailed prescriptions is established, to help the client implement the identified solutions.

A concrete example of a technique that is used in brief strategic therapy is the "prescription of the symptom". This technique is to "prescribe" the client to continue doing the behavior or thought that is causing the problem, but in a controlled and conscious way. This allows the client to realize that the problem is not as serious as he thought and helps him overcome it.

For example, if a client is experiencing social anxiety and avoiding social situations, the therapist could prescribe that the client continues to avoid those situations but only for a short period of time every day. Then, the therapist would work with the client to gradually increase the amount of time in social situations, which would help the client overcome his social anxiety.

Strategic dialogue

Strategic dialogue is a technique used in brief strategic therapy to Help the patient understand and change their inappropriate thought and behavior patterns. It is based on the idea that the therapist and the client work together as a team to find effective solutions to customer problems.

Strategic dialogue implies a series of specific questions that the therapist makes the client to challenge his patterns of thought and behavior and help him find effective solutions to his problems. These questions are asked in a specific and carefully designed way to help the client reach a deeper understanding of their problem and possible solutions.

Some of the key components of strategic dialogue are:

1. Detail questions: These are questions about the specific details of the problem you are experiencing to help the patient understand it in greater depth.
2. Exception questions: The therapist asks the patient about moments when the problem has not been present or has been less intense to help you identify effective solutions.
3. Change questions: These are questions that the patient should strive to answer, about the changes that would be necessary to overcome the problem and how could these changes implement.
4. Resolution questions: The patient is asked what have been to date some of the solutions used in the past and have worked, and how could these solutions apply to their current problem.

What is the strategic dialogue in therapy

What are therapeutic aphorisms and how they are used in brief strategic therapy

Therapeutic aphorisms are Brief and concise phrases that are used to help someone understand complex concepts of your problem or therapy in a simple and memorable way. They are evocative phrases, many of them metaphorical, full of meaning that make the beliefs and thoughts of the patient who are directed.

Therapeutic aphorisms can be used by the therapist during the session or can be "prescribed" to the client as a task to perform outside the session. The objective of using aphorisms is to help the client to integrate the key concepts of therapy into their daily lives and, thus, accelerate the change process.

Some examples of therapeutic aphorisms used in strategic brief therapy include:

• "If you keep doing the same, you will get the same results"
• "The problem is not the problem, but the solution"
• "The solution is always easier than the problem"
• "The change is inevitable, but progress is optional"
• "The words we use to describe a problem influence how we experience it"

These aphorisms can help understand complex concepts in an intense way, which can increase the effectiveness of therapy. In addition, the use of aphorisms can help the patient remember the key concepts outside the session, which can help in the change process.

Therapeutic aphorisms to unlock and reinforce

References

• Watzlawick P., Nardone g., 1999 - Brief therapy: Philosophy and Art - Editorial Herder, Barcelona.
• Watzlawick P., Nardone g., 2000 - Brief Strategic Therapy - Editorial Paidós, Barcelona
• Sirigatti s., Stefanile c., Nardone g., 2011 - The discovery and findings of Psychology - Editorial Paidós, Barcelona.
• Nardone g., Watzlawick P., 1992 - The art of change - Editorial Herder, Barcelona.