Praxical.Psych
Teaching · Unit 1

Defining psychotherapy, and comparing the psychotherapies

Two sessions. Establishes what psychotherapy is by testing a definition against cases it was not written for, then establishes the transtheoretical framework that makes forty-five systems comparable rather than forty-five things to memorise.

100 min of teachingChapter 1Student-facing unit →
Deck

What are we even studying?

Defining psychotherapy, and comparing the psychotherapies

26 slides · ~100 min · presenter notes throughout
Lecture notes

How to run it

Two fifty-minute sessions. Session A defines; session B compares. They can be run as a single hundred-minute block with a break at the recap.

5 segments · 100 min · misconceptions and board work
In class

The Tribunal

Eight cases. Your group must rule on each one — psychotherapy, or not — and cite the clause. Then another group gets to attack your rulings.

40 min · small groups
Take home

Two Systems, One Grid

Pick the two therapies that sound least alike. Run both through the same eight questions. Then decide whether the difference you assumed was there actually is.

~3 h · individual

What students should be able to do afterwards

  • 1Give a defensible definition of psychotherapy and say what it excludes
  • 2Describe the transtheoretical framework: processes of change and levels of content
  • 3Explain why the number of named therapies is not the number of distinct treatments
  • 4State the difference between a theory of pathology, a theory of change, a technique and a stance
Educational use only

Praxical.Psych is a teaching tool. It is not medical, clinical, psychological or legal advice, not a diagnosis, not treatment, not supervision, and not a credential. Nothing here creates a clinician–patient or solicitor–client relationship. Every patient, case, transcript and simulated session is fictional. Clinical and legal requirements vary by jurisdiction and change over time — verify anything that bears on a real decision against your own regulator, statute and current professional guidance, and consult a qualified professional.

Do not enter real patient information. If you or someone else is in crisis: US & Canada 988 · UK & Ireland 116 123 · Australia 13 11 14 · elsewhere findahelpline.com · immediate danger, your local emergency number.

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Before you begin

What Praxical.Psych is, and is not

Praxical.Psych is an educational tool. It teaches the theory, evidence base and clinical method of psychotherapy at the level of an advanced survey course, and it lets you rehearse a complete session in a simulator.

It is not medical, clinical, psychological or legal advice. It cannot diagnose or treat anyone, and it does not state the law where you practise — requirements differ by jurisdiction and change. Nothing here creates a clinician–patient or solicitor–client relationship.

  • Every patient, transcript and case in this app is fictional — a composite written for teaching. None depicts a real person.
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  • Scores from the instruments here are for learning how they behave. They are not a diagnosis and not a risk assessment, and must not inform a decision about a real person.
  • Do not enter real patient information. Everything you type stays in this browser, but that is not the same as a compliant clinical record system.
If you are in crisis

In the US and Canada, call or text 988. In the UK and Ireland, call 116 123 (Samaritans). Elsewhere, find a local line at findahelpline.com. In immediate danger, use your local emergency number.

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