Course Syllabus

 

Description of Course

What happens in psychotherapy? Why do some conversations heal and others stall (and by extension, can therapy sometimes be harmful)? And what do culture, context, and scientific research have to say about what works, for whom, and why?

This course is an immersive exploration of psychotherapy, inviting students to step inside the major approaches that underpin and guide modern therapeutic practices. We will explore how different schools of psychotherapy, from psychoanalytic and cognitive-behavioral traditions to meta-cognitive and compassion-focused approaches, conceptualize health and illness, change processes, and the patient-therapist relationship. We will do so by reading scientific research, reviewing treatment manuals and clinician tutorials, and learning from expert clinicians, and we will pay particular attention to understanding psychotherapy in Scandinavian contexts. Through guided role plays and small-group exercises, students will also experiment with core assessment and therapeutic strategies, gaining firsthand insight into the skills, challenges, and ethical considerations involved in psychotherapy. Finally, students will have the opportunity to strengthen skills in critical thinking, literature research, APA-style writing, and oral and written communication of scientific research to varied audiences.

 

Learning Objectives

By the end of this course, students will be able to:

• Identify and explain the theoretical frameworks and research underpinning major approaches to psychotherapy, both generally and in a Scandinavian context.

• Critically evaluate these approaches to psychotherapy through examination of their underlying assumptions, methods, strengths, limitations, and evidence base.

• Demonstrate an understanding of different psychotherapeutic and assessment strategies through small experiential role plays both individually and in small group settings.

• Demonstrate proficiency in APA-style writing and oral communication of scientific findings

 

Faculty

Suman Ambwani. PhD (Psychology, Texas A&M University, 2008, Clinical Psychology Internship, Medical University of South Carolina, 2007-2008). MS (Psychology, Texas A&M University, 2005). BA (Psychology, Sociology, Macalester College, 2003). Previously an associate professor of psychology at Dickinson College, visiting scientist at King’s College London, and visiting scientist at Boston Children’s Hospital/Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. My research broadly examines factors associated with the development and maintenance of eating disorders, focusing on socio-cultural features and difficulties with interpersonal relationships, as well as interventions for anorexia nervosa (if you are interested, you can learn more about my research here). I grew up in Mumbai, India, and Jakarta, Indonesia, and have spent most of my adult years in the United States (Minnesota, Texas, South Carolina, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts) and UK (London). With DIS since 2022.

 

Field Studies

1. The Little White House. We will visit a clinical practice in Copenhagen and meet with the owner and practicing psychologist, Dr. Debbie Quackenbush, specializing in couples therapy. During this field study, we will focus on the process of psychological assessment, exploring how tools such as clinical interviews and standardized assessments are used in case conceptualization and treatment planning in couples therapy.

2. Ecotherapy. A local practicing psychologist (and DIS faculty), Kamilla Lange, will lead us through an exploration on the role of nature in therapeutic processes in the therapeutic gardens at Valbyparken. 

 

Guest Lecturers

• "En af os" - the National campaign project working to destigmatize psychiatric illness. We will meet a user of the Danish psychiatric care system and a volunteer from the project to gain a lived experience perspective.

• Marie Meier, PhD - Marie will join us to share her research on perceptions and experiences of mental illness in Denmark and how these have evolved over the past century, as described in her new book, Sygdom og Skam – Sindlidelsernes erfaringshistorie i Danmark (Illness and Shame: Experiencing Mental Illness in the Danish Welfare State).

• Eleftherios Saftis, MSc - Eleftherios is a practicing psychologist and qualified psychoanalyst from the Centre for Freudian Analysis and Research. He will join us to share his experiences with psychoanalysis in mental health services and private practice.

• Michelle Lindhardt, MSc - Michelle is a practicing clinical psychologist and Certified Metacognitive Therapist (MCT). She will join us to explain the principles and application of MCT in her clinical practice.

• Theresa Dahm, ClinPsyD, PhD - Theresa is a psychologist in private practice and has a postgraduate diploma in Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT), an integrative, biopsychosocial approach to therapy. She will join us to explain the principles and application of CFT in her clinical practice.

 

Approach to Teaching

The purpose of this course is to facilitate dialogue, debate, and critical thinking about psychotherapy from various theoretical and empirical perspectives. It is expected that learning will occur primarily through reading, discussion, and the exchange of ideas – consequently, the outcome of the course depends largely on your active participation and students will frequently be called upon to answer questions and engage in role-play activities. Thus, you must do the readings in advance to prepare for our class activities and discussions. We will have some short lectures followed by time for activities, discussions, and the exchange of ideas. This also means that students should be able to feel confident in presenting their viewpoints even when these are different from other class members, so we will work together to ensure a respectful and collaborative learning environment in our class. 

Connecting with me: I would love to get to know all of you individually so please reach out to meet for coffee or to say a quick hello outside of class time at least once this semester. Meeting outside of official class timings can be a great way to clarify course material, discuss ideas related to our course (however tangentially!), and strengthen our faculty-student relationship. I am also available for office hours by appointment in case you have questions or need additional support with any course-related content.

 

Expectations of the Students

The success of this interactive course depends on your serious commitment to truly engage with the material. To that end, I expect that you will spend at least 6-7 hours every week outside of class preparing for this course. You must come to class prepared, having closely read and evaluated the reading assignments, and your class discussions should reflect this careful reading. While taking notes on the reading assignments, try to identify which portions were particularly notable/important and why they caught your attention. Include summaries in your own words, write questions to yourself, agree/disagree with the content, and generally try to delve deeply into a thoughtful evaluation of the reading assignments.

You are expected to behave professionally and participate actively during class and field studies. This includes all of the following:

• Attend all class meetings, field studies, and related activities.
• Be punctual and stay for the entire experience.
• Contribute to shared learning: ask relevant questions, offer critical reflections, and respond respectfully to others’ comments.
• Put your phone away and turn off notifications on any other electronic devices.
• Please be particularly respectful and attentive when we have guest lecturers – they are a fantastic resource and a great opportunity for you to ask questions of experts in psychotherapy.

Students are required to treat other students' contributions with confidentiality and respect for privacy. You may share ideas and experiences with people outside the class, but no information referring to personal identities should be revealed. Any violation of this confidentiality will be taken seriously.

 

Class Representatives

Each semester DIS looks for class representatives to become an official spokesperson for their class group, addressing any concerns that may arise (in academic or related matters), suggesting improvements and coming up with new ideas. Class representatives are a great way for DIS faculty to ensure better and timelier feedback on their courses, assessments and teaching styles, and as such perform an invaluable role in connecting student needs with faculty instruction during term time. Class Representatives will be elected in class at the beginning of the semester.

 

Evaluation

Students will be evaluated throughout the semester by completing various group and individual assignments. All students will be assigned to groups at the beginning of the semester and will be required to complete all coursework in order to receive a passing grade. Grading rubrics will be provided in advance of all assignment deadlines and students are strongly encouraged to engage in self-assessment and/or peer review prior to submitting assignments for evaluation. 

 

Grading

Assessment	%	Individual or group assessment	Deadline
Class Participation	20%	Individual	Throughout
Reading Pop-ups	10%	Individual	Throughout
The Great Debate	20%	Group and Individual	Apr 16
Journal Club	20%	Group and Individual	Throughout – check Calendar for your specific assigned date
Case Study: Analysis and Application	30%	Group	May 4
Final reflection	Pass/fail	Individual	May 11

 

Class participation and engagement

Preparation, attendance, and engagement in classes, field studies, and guest lectures is essential in this course because it shows that you are taking responsibility for your own learning. It also demonstrates that you are keeping up with the readings and understanding the theoretical perspectives and research evidence discussed in class.

Your class participation and engagement grade will be calculated based on the following criteria:

• You are on time and prepared for class, having completed the required readings and assignments.

• You are engaged throughout our class meeting/field study/guest lecture and demonstrate this by prompting discussion and/or responding to your peers by linking comments and asking relevant questions.

• Your contributions reflect a thoughtful (rather than superficial) understanding of the reading assignments and demonstrate an ability to integrate knowledge across reading assignments.

• You offer more than just personal opinion or anecdote – that is, you root your comments specifically in the text we are discussing (e.g., “this reminds me of p. 76 where the authors indicate X”) and link ideas and comments with content from past reading assignments.

• You listen attentively and respectfully to others (and you avoid dominating or silencing others). Please note that active participation and engagement also refers to active listening, so there is no need to speak solely to fill the silence.

• You work collaboratively with people to achieve learning goals when you are placed in a small group.

• You actively engage in small group exercises and role-plays in class.

 

Reading pop-ups

The purpose of the reading pop-ups is to give you an opportunity to informally demonstrate your understanding of the readings and articulate your pending questions. Several times during the semester, I will give you a few minutes at the beginning of class to jot down a few notes and reflections about the assigned readings for that day. You are welcome to use your notes to write these reflections if you wish, but you should not use the readings themselves. As long as you have closely read the assignment, you will be able to complete the task without difficulty. Of course, I understand that sometimes life happens and you may not be able to always complete the reading in time for class, so I will give you an opportunity to skip one of these reading pop-ups without any penalty.

 

The great debate

Several years after finishing your clinical psychology training, imagine that you bump into one of your grad school friends, Uma, and the two of you have a conversation about science in psychotherapy. Uma argues that as long as a therapy works, it doesn’t really matter why it works. She suggests that as long as the treatment has been subjected to a rigorous randomized controlled trial (RCT) and has demonstrated superiority to a no-treatment control group, we can (and should) use that treatment in our clinical practice. Is Uma correct, do we not need to really understand the underlying mechanisms of change, and should RCT-based evidence always be considered the “gold standard” for evaluating psychotherapy?

In this debate, you will be assigned to small groups to argue in favor of or against Uma’s perspective. You must draw upon the course content (i.e., readings, lectures, discussions, guest lectures, field studies) to support your arguments as described above. You should try to anticipate the other team’s arguments and be prepared to respond to those as well (so consider both the pros and cons of your position in preparing your arguments).

You will submit your debate notes (including references) in advance and will be evaluated on these as well as your performance in the debate. Evaluation criteria will include thoughtfulness, logic, critical analysis, and your ability to integrate relevant course material (with citations). Please note that you are not permitted to use AI for this assignment as it is not in the spirit of the debate. Further details will be provided in class.  

 

Journal club: A closer look at psychotherapy research

The purpose of this assignment is to give you an opportunity to read and critique research examining the application of a particular form of psychotherapy for a given diagnosis. It will also help you to hone your oral presentation skills and fluency in discussing psychotherapy research. You will be assigned to the date and type of psychotherapy but can select the research paper that you wish to present for the journal club. The paper must be from a reputable, peer-reviewed scientific journal (if you are unsure about this, please check with me), and it should not be a systematic review or meta-analysis – however, you are welcome to select papers using either quantitative or qualitative methods.

The journal club presentation is limited to 15 minutes, followed by 5-10 minutes for Q/A. Please note that this is a strict time limit so you should prepare and practice your presentation accordingly. Note that all group members are expected to contribute to the preparation and presentation equally and this will be considered in the assessment for the assignment.

You should prepare a PowerPoint presentation in which you include all of the following:

• The citation for the journal article in APA format (this should be your title slide)

• A brief overview of the research aims, methods, and conclusions. What was the purpose of the study? How did they approach their research questions (i.e., research design)? What was the nature of their therapeutic approach? What were their main conclusions?

• A critical analysis of the study

• Were the methods appropriate for the research questions? Were they implemented correctly? Are the outcome measures valid or might other tools/methods have been preferable?

• Were study limitations adequately addressed? What other limitations do you notice about the research design (other than those noted by the authors)? What are some of the study strengths? Be sure to clearly distinguish your own critiques (strengths and weaknesses) from those that were identified by the study authors.

• What are the theoretical foundations for how mental suffering is understood in this therapeutic approach, and what are the proposed mechanisms of therapeutic change? Did the study look at the specific effect of the intervention on those mechanisms?

• What are the effect sizes? Is there a significant effect?

• Are the conclusions warranted based on the data presented?

• Is the study generalizable? To what extent? 

• Suggested next steps – where would you like to see research go next in terms of this particular approach to psychotherapy? What are your lingering curiosities?

 

Case study: Analysis and application

The purpose of this group assignment is to allow you to synthesize your knowledge over the course of the semester and apply your critical thinking and analysis skills to a clinical case. The case will feature an amalgamation of real client experiences – both to preserve client anonymity and also to highlight the complexity of lived experiences.

Your goal in this assignment is threefold: 1) conceptualize this case from at least 3 different psychotherapeutic perspectives, and 2) design an integrative treatment plan that draws upon at least 3 different psychotherapeutic approaches in substantive ways, 3) reflect on the strengths and limitations of your proposed (integrative) approach.

You can communicate this information in a manner of your choosing. For example, you can do a live/recorded role-play where you take on the role of therapists and describe your conceptualization and therapeutic strategy for your client, or you can develop a comic strip or another type of visual representation depicting these elements, or you can develop a treatment manual with an introduction and description of the therapeutic strategy, or you may have other ideas as well – be creative, the choice of format is yours. The one requirement in terms of format is that you may not role-play the client (this is to minimize stereotyping – we can talk more about this issue in class).

In addition to the above, your group must also write a short paper in APA-format that explains the different elements of the case conceptualization and therapeutic strategy in relation to course materials and also assess the strengths and limitations of your proposed approach. Please note that this paper must be clearly and explicitly grounded in course materials and include citations from class resources; please refrain from personal anecdotes or conjecture.

You will have the opportunity to present your group’s case analysis to the rest of the class at the end of the semester.

 

Final reflection

The purpose of this brief (1-2 page) final reflection is to give you an opportunity to consider your learning journey in this course and from your time in Denmark. What are some key take-away messages about psychotherapy and what have you observed in terms of cross-cultural similarities or differences related to this topic? Has the course changed any of your perceptions about psychotherapy or other aspects of psychological distress/wellness? How can you carry these learnings with you in your future life, professionally and/or personally? The assignment will be assessed on a complete/incomplete basis to inspire you to write honestly and authentically.

 

Readings

Required readings will be listed for each individual class, so please check the calendar to identify what you should read before class. Note that the reading list may be edited and updated closer to the start date for the course.

• Ayers, A., David, S., Boniwell, I., (2013). The Oxford Handbook of Happiness. UK: Oxford University Press.

• Bao, K.J. & Lyubomirsky, S. (2014). Making Happiness Last: Using the Hedonic Adaptation Prevention Model to Extend the Success of Positive Interventions. In A.C. Parks & S.M. Schueller (Eds). The Wiley Blackwell Handbook of Positive Psychology Interventions. Oxford: John Wiley. pp. 373-384. 

• Beck, Judith S. Cognitive Behavior Therapy. Basics and Beyond, Guilford Press, New York, 2011.

• Bracken et al.: Psychiatry beyond the current paradigm. The British Journal of Psychiatry Dec 2012, 201 (6) 430-434.

• Carmody, J. et al.: An empirical study of the mechanisms of mindfulness in a mindfulness-based stress reduction program. Journal of Clinical Psychology. Volume 65, Issue 6, June 2009 , Pages 613–626

• Bystritsky, A. et al. Current Diagnosis and Treatment of Anxiety Disorders. Pharmacy and Terapeutics. 2013 Jan;38(1):30-57.

• Daya, R., (2001). Changing the Face of Multicultural Counselling with Principles of Change. Canadian Journal of Counselling / Revue canadienne de counseling, 2001, Vol. 35:1, 49-62.

• Finsrud, I., Helene A. Nissen-Lie, Karianne Vrabel, Andreas Høstmælingen, Bruce E. Wampold & Pål G. Ulvenes (2022) It's the therapist and the treatment: The structure of common therapeutic relationship factors, Psychotherapy Research, 32:2, 139-150

• Fonagy, P.: The effectiveness of psychodynamic psychotherapies: an update. 2015. World Psychiatry;14:137–150.

• Fried, E. I. What are ´good´ depression symptoms. Comparing the centrality of DSM and non-DSM symptoms of depression in a network analysis. Journal of Affective Disorders 189 (2016) 314–320.

• Hall, K, Gibbie, T. and Lubman, GI.: Motivational interviewing techniques - facilitating behaviour change in the general practice setting. Aust Fam Physician. 2012 Sep;41(9):660-7.

• Henrich, Joseph, Steven J Heine, and Ara Norenzayan. “The weirdest people in the world?” Behavioral and Brain Sciences 33, no. 2-3 (2010): 61-83.

• Kabat-Zinn, J. (2003). Mindfulness-Based Interventions in Context: Past, Present, and Future. Clinical Psychology, Vol. 10 (2), pp. 144-156.

• Kellogg, S. H., Young, J. E. Schema therapy for borderline personality disorder. Journal of Clinical Psychology. 2006, Vol. 62 Issue 4, p445-458.

• Keng et al. (2011). Effects of Mindfulness on Psychological Health: A Review of Empirical Studies. Clinical Psychology Review, 31 (6), pp 1041-1056.

• Kennard, D., (2004). The Therapeutic Community as an adaptable treatment modality across different settings. Psychiatric Quarterly, 75 (3), 295 – 306.

• Milrod, B. et al. (2007). A randomized controlled clinical trial of psychoanalytic psychotherapy for panic disorder. In: The American Journal of Psychiatry,164 (2), 265-272.

• Rubak, S., Sandbæk, A., Lauritzen, T & Christensen, B. Motivational interviewing: a systematic review and meta-analysis. 2005. British Journal of General Practice; 55: 305–312.

• Shamdasani, S., & Loewenthal, D. (Eds.). (2020). Exploring transcultural histories of psychotherapies. Routledge. Chapter 1, Exploring transcultural histories of psychotherapies.

• Simons et al., (2006). Metacognitive Therapy versus Exposure and Response Prevention for Pediatric Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, 75, pp 257-264.

• Teasdale et al., (2002). Metacognitive Awareness and Prevention of Relapse in Depression: Empirical Evidence. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, Vol. 70 (2), pp 275-287.

• Wampold, B. E. How important are the common factors in psychotherapy? An update. 2015. World Psychiatry;14:270–277. 

• Wendt, D. C., Gone, J. P., & Nagata, D. K. (2015). Potentially harmful therapy and multicultural counseling: Bridging two disciplinary discourses. The Counseling Psychologist, 43(3), 334-358.  For this reading, focus mainly on page 343-353. 

• Werbart, Andrzej & Annevall, Amanda & Hillblom, Johan. (2019). Successful and Less Successful Psychotherapies Compared: Three Therapists and Their Six Contrasting Cases. Frontiers in Psychology. 10.

• Whitley, S., (2004). The evolution of the therapeutic community. Psychiatric Quarterly, 75 (3), 233-248.

• Sabine Wilhelm, Hilary Weingarden, Ilana Ladis, Valerie Braddick, Jin Shin, Nicholas C. Jacobson, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy in the Digital Age: Presidential Address, Behavior Therapy, Volume 51, Issue 1, 2020, Pages 1-14.

• Yosep I, Suryani S, Mediani HS, Mardhiyah A, Maulana I. Digital Therapy: Alleviating Anxiety and Depression in Adolescent Students During COVID-19 Online Learning - A Scoping Review. J Multidiscip Healthc. 2023 Jun 21;16:1705-1719. doi: 10.2147/JMDH.S416424. PMID: 37366385; PMCID: PMC10290852.

• Zak, P. J. , 2015, Why Inspiring Stories Make Us React: The Neuroscience of Narrative. Cerebrum: the Dana Forum on Brain Science. Jan-Feb; 2015: 2.

 

Course policies and procedures

Laptops in the classroom

The default policy for this class is NO laptops in the classroom.  Both academic research and personal experience have shown laptops to be an enormous source of distraction and an impediment to engaged discussion as well as learning. If you need to use a laptop during class for a specific reason, learning accommodations or otherwise, please discuss this with me in advance. Thank you for your understanding. 

On the use of AI tools 

Intellectual honesty is vital to an academic community and for my fair evaluation of your work. In this course, we will adhere to a limited use approach to AI. This means that the use of AI tools such as ChatGPT in this course is restricted to specific uses, which will be defined by the faculty (and some assignments, such as The Debate, prohibit the use of AI). The primary content of assignments should reflect your knowledge, creativity, and critical thinking. As with all sources of information and ideas, you must ensure that all AI contributions are correctly cited, namely that I need to see your input into the AI tool, and output of the tool associated with the assignment you submit. You will then be asked to submit an AI declaration to accompany those assignments. Further details will be provided in class.

Late papers

Where late papers are possible, they will be accepted up to 3 days after the deadline with a 10% per day late penalty applied toward the grade. Please note that some assignments cannot be submitted late because they require presentation during class time. 

Academic accommodations

Your learning experience in this class is important to me.  If you have approved academic accommodations with DIS, please make sure I receive your DIS accommodations letter within two weeks from the start of classes. If you can think of other ways I can support your learning, please don't hesitate to talk to me. If you have any further questions about your academic accommodations, contact Academic Support academicsupport@dis.dk.