Attachment Centred Therapy

This textbook is a detailed guide to Attachment Centred Therapy (ACT), a model developed over three decades. It helps present and future therapists work with a person to build a more coherent narrative of their life, which is an essential indicator of emotional and mental health. The book is written by the man who designed and developed the therapy, so it draws on real-world experience of putting it into practice as well as on theory and research. It shows how ACT can be applied across a wide range of clinical contexts.

ACT aims to give people in therapy new resources for dealing with their main difficulties by changing how they process information about the past in the present, so that the future goes better. It is a growth-oriented psychotherapy designed with Maslow's Modified Hierarchy of Needs as a guide. What sets it apart is its use of the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) both as an assessment instrument and as a vehicle for therapeutic intervention. It is also a collaborative treatment, in which therapist and client work as a team to build a more coherent account of the past and to correct errors in information processing.

The book offers practical guidance on applying the model, and each concept is illustrated with case studies. These include sections of session dialogue annotated to show the methods in action. It is intended as a teaching tool for teachers and students of systemic practice, family therapy, clinical psychology, counselling and psychotherapy, as well as for qualified practitioners and those training or undergoing professional development.