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Supportive Psychotherapy the Search for Positive Meanings

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Jeremy Holmes
Jeremy Holmes*
Affiliation:
North Devon Healthcare Trust, Barnstaple, Devon EX31 4JB
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Abstract

Background

The attempt to define psychotherapeutic skills appropriate for psychiatrists has aroused an interest in supportive psychotherapy, a previously undervalued and underdeveloped member of the psychotherapeutic family. This has been coupled with an increasing recognition of the importance of support within formal psychotherapies, especially when working with highly disturbed patients.

Method

A review of supportive psychotherapy (ST) was performed, based on a Medline literature search.

Results

It is argued that, from the perspective of attachment theory, support is an integral part of all psychotherapies. ST is also a specific mode of treatment suitable for some patients suffering from psychotic illnesses and borderline personality disorder. ST is an eclectic treatment drawing on many theoretical approaches. A common theme based on a narrative co-constructionist perspective, the search for positive meaning, is identified.

Conclusions

Supportive psychotherapy is an essential component of good psychiatric practice. Further research is needed to define its benefits and limitations.

Type
Review Article
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 167 , Issue 4 , October 1995 , pp. 439 - 445
Copyright
Copyright © 1995 The Royal College of Psychiatrists 

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