Psychotherapy of Schizophrenia

Given the temper of the times, the title of this book is brave and somewhat provocative. In the current world of general psychiatry, and even in psychoanalytic circles, few would agree with the authors that psychotherapy is the treatment of choice for schizophrenic people. The conventional wisdom is that schizophrenia is an illness with a biological, probably inherited, cause and that psychological approaches have not proved effective in its treatment...But Karon and Vandenbos have a different view. It istheir belief that in the hands of a skillful, experienced, and motivated therapist, psychotherapy can be dramatically helpful to schizophrenic people, more helpful and even less expensive than alternative treatments stressing medication management. Thisbelief is supported by their vast clinical experience and by the findings of the Michigan State project, in which they compared the efficacy of psychotherapy and medication. Neither that project nor this book settles the question once and for all, but they have written an extremely useful volume which should convince anybody open to their argument that there is a great deal to say in favor of their position... This book will stir strong feeling. In spite of its shortcomings, it is well worth reading. -- James P. Frosch, M.D. Review Of Psychoanalytic Books Given the temper of the times, the title of this book is brave and somewhat provocative. In the current world of general psychiatry, and even in psychoanalytic circles, few would agree with the authors that psychotherapy is the treatment of choice for schizophrenic people. The conventional wisdom is that schizophrenia is an illness with a biological, probably inherited, cause and that psychological approaches have not proved effective in its treatment...But Karon and Vandenbos have a different view. It is their belief that in the hands of a skillful, experienced, and motivated therapist, psychotherapy can be dramatically helpful to schizophrenic people, more helpful and even less expensive than alternative treatments stressing medication management. This belief is supported by their vast clinical experience and by the findings of the Michigan State project, in which they compared the efficacy of psychotherapy and medication. Neither that project nor this book settles the question once and for all, but they have written an extremely useful volume which should convince anybody open to their argument that there is a great deal to say in favor of their position... This book will stir strong feeling. In spite of its shortcomings, it is well worth reading. Whether or not the authors are correct in their belief that schizophrenia is a purely psychological phenomenon best treated by psychotherapy, they have demonstrated that psychoanalysis has much to contribute the understanding of schizophrenic individuals." -- James P. Frosch, M.D. Review Of Psychoanalytic Books