The Applications of Attachment Theory to Psychotherapy

• A certificate of attendance may be applied for up to 20.5 hours CPD (pro rata on the basis of correct answers in multiple choice questionnaire assessing your knowledge of the module): £36

Since John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth’s pioneering studies into the infant’s need for proximity to a loving caretaker, research and writings on attachment theory have flowered into a major psychological discipline. This has greatly influenced the way we understand the needs of the dependent child and the necessity of secure attachment throughout life for emotional growth.

This collection of talks and papers addresses the question of how these insights into attachment are applied to psychotherapy. Knowing the answer is something of a holy grail, the search for which is generating much important work, we hope that this collection of talks will contribute to the project of connecting some of the threads in this discussion.

We ask our presenters: How does attachment theory inform the practitioner’s understanding of their client’s relational history? How does it help us to understand the nature of the attachment between the therapist and client? What specific theoretical/technical advances should be taught about attachment-focused therapy? How does psychotherapy enable someone with an insecure attachment model of others become secure in their current and future significant relationships?

Some of the talks in our online module The Nature of Trauma and Dissociation are also about the application of attachment theory to clinical practice, for example, the talks by Dr Allan Schore. We are thus offering a combined package, which reduces the price of both modules. See Fees.