There is a significant lack of research on the longitudinal development of psychotherapists. Candidates at Norwegian psychotherapy institutes are invited to participate in the study, which is led by Professor Randi Ulberg in collaboration with the therapy institutes.
Background
Empirical data suggest that psychotherapists' relational competence, prior relational experiences, and ability to consider others' inner lives are crucial factors for treatment outcomes. However, there is a lack of empirical knowledge about therapists' perspectives on therapy as they begin their training and their development over time. Given the scarcity of research in this area and the likely importance of therapeutic development for patient outcomes, there is an urgent need to understand more about this. Such knowledge could significantly impact the quality of training at psychotherapeutic training institutions.
Participants
Therapy candidates from various training programs for therapy with children, adolescents, and adults—covering both individual and group therapy—are invited to participate in the study. This includes participants who are medical doctors and psychologists, as well as representatives from other professions.
Method
NORTUT is a longitudinal study examining changes in therapists' therapeutic attitudes at the beginning, during, and after their training. The questionnaires used will be the Therapeutic Identity Questionnaire (Norwegian version of ThId) (Sandell et al., 2004; Sandell et al., 2006, 2007). Responses will be collected through the University of Oslo's online form system (nettskjema.no). Data will be securely stored using the University of Oslo's Service for Sensitive Data (TSD).
Ethics
Norwegian Centre for Research Data (NSD): Project 59798: Norwegian Study of Therapist Development (NORTUT) - a Longitudinal Study. Principal Investigator: Randi Ulberg