The Heroic Client - by Barry L Duncan & Scott D Miller & Jacqueline a Sparks (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

In this controversial book, psychologists Barry Duncan and Scott Miller, cofounders of the Institute for the Study of Therapeutic Change, challenge the traditional focus on diagnosis, "silver bullet" techniques, and magic pills, exposing them as empirically bankrupt practices that only diminish the role of clients and hasten therapy's extinction. Instead, they advocate for the long-ignored but most crucial factor in therapeutic success-the innate resources of the client. Based on extensive clinical research and case studies, The Heroic Client not only shows how to harness the client's powers of regeneration to make therapy effective, but also how to enlist the client as a partner to make therapy accountable. The Heroic Client inspires therapists to boldly rewrite the drama of therapy, recast clients in their rightful role as heroes and heroines of the therapeutic stage, and legitimize their services to third-party payers without the compromises of the medical model.

From the Back Cover

The Thoroughly Revised Edition of the Book That Will Lead Psychotherapy Out of the Stone Age and Into the Age of The Heroic Client

This revised edition of The Heroic Client presents the latest empirical findings about what works in therapy-featuring the revolutionary increase in effectiveness achieved via client-based outcome feedback. Translating this research into pragmatic steps to enhance the benefit of any model of therapy, The Heroic Client calls for nothing less than a paradigm shift-a shift that not only improves outcome one client at a time but also assigns those we serve key roles in determining the way therapy is both delivered and funded.

"The Heroic Client calls into question the purity of therapy models . . . a timely and inspiring volume-itself, a heroic provocation to the mental health profession."
-Sheila McNamee, professor of communication, University of New Hampshire; author, Relational Responsibility, and editor, Therapy as Social Construction

"Warning: If you're addicted to long letters of appreciation touting your clinical prowess, this book will be hazardous to your mental health. It will show you how to harness your clients' expertise and make therapy a more collaborative, outcome-oriented experience."
-Michele Weiner-Davis, author, Divorce Busting

"The Heroic Client inspires us to re-remember why we became therapists in the first place."
-Stephen Madigan, director of training, Toronto Narrative Therapy Project, and managing editor, www.planet-therapy.com

"This is must reading for graduate students and novice therapists who are entering the field, and thought-provoking and stimulating reading for seasoned professionals."
-Michael J. Lambert, professor of psychology, Brigham Young University, and coauthor of the Outcome Questionnaire and Assessing Outcome in Clinical Practice

Review Quotes

"... Great. Great. Great. Buy. Buy. Buy...one of the few works on therapy which I would attempt to salvage if shipwrecked on a desert island...." (Ipnosis, No.16, Winter 2004)

About the Author

Barry L. Duncan is cofounder and codirector of the Institute for the Study of Therapeutic Change and in private practice in Coral Springs, Florida.

Scott D. Miller is cofounder and codirector of the Institute for the Study of Therapeutic Change, in Chicago, Illinois.

Jacqueline A. Sparks is assistant professor of marriage and family therapy, Department of Human Development and Family Studies, at the University of Rhode Island.