Alejandro Ávila Espada, Isabel Caro Gabalda, David Orlinsky, Silvia Rodríguez Oliva, Amparo Coscollá Iranzo and Monserrat Alonso Alvarez
This paper studies the figure of the therapist as a fundamental part of therapist-patient relationship, by means of a better knowledge of the perceptions on their own professional development through all along their carear, from the beginning to present. Two descriptive constructs are used: RCD, Retrospective Career Development; CED, Current Experienced Development; CCD, Comparative Cohorts Development and LID, Longitudinal Individual Development. The Spanish Psychotherapist results (from a sample of 181 therapist from a variety of theoretical frameworks) have been related with the international one, integrated by more than 3000 professional therapists. Both samples have been analyzed with the Common Core Questionnaire for the Development of Psychotherapists (CCDP), through change charasteristic items in the therapist development, with the aim of detemining if change was positive or negative. By means of this procedure the amount of therapist development progress was assessed all along the professional career. The whole experienced and present development perceived by those professionals on their own showed a significant and beneficial change in their therapeutic abilities, as well as a higher perception of their professional growth, both present and professional experience lifetime. Spanish therapist showed, in general, the same patterns of development indicators of the international sample
Professional Development, Psychotherapist Training, Psychotherapy