Evaluate the benefits of formulating an overall treatment plan of the psychotherapeutic process.

Knowledge and Understanding

Evaluate the contribution of the 3 major TA schools to psychotherapy, exploring the advantages and limitations of these models and their implications for specific ways of working with individuals, groups and couples.

Learning
Problem Solving
Enquiry

Integrate theory into practice by selecting, justifying and reflecting upon the use of specific interventions and techniques to facilitate curative outcomes using the methodology of each school or approach.
Application

Written Assignment (assessing LO’s 1-3)
Evaluate the advantages and limitations of the three TA major approaches to psychotherapy. Reflect upon which concepts you use to facilitate change. Making reference to treatment planning and contracting in your approach. Use examples from your personal or clinical experience to illustrate your understanding

Formative assessments are those ongoing assessment opportunities whereby students can gain an enhanced understanding of how well they are progressing with their learning. Any mark generated through formative assessment is for feedback purposes only and will not contribute to the overall module grade. Formative assessments also allow Facilitators to focus on the needs of the student group as well as to improve student attainment.
Formative assessments are made throughout the course; feedback is regularly given to the student regarding their participation in small and large group discussions, including strengths, limitations and areas for development in skills-based practice and exercises. In addition, Facilitator, peer and self-assessments opportunities occur twice during the academic year.

Summative assessments are used to make judgements about what students have learned from studying the module. Therefore, they contribute to the overall mark for the module and for progression or the award. Summative assessments are taken at the end of the module. For each assessment it is important to identify which learning outcomes are being assessed. Learning outcomes are the specific skills and knowledge that students expected to demonstrate because of taking a module. Summative assessment consists of essays, case studies transcript analyses, presentations and Vivas.

Transactional Analysis psychotherapy provides a distinct focus on change and cure. In this module students will be introduced to Transactional Analysis approaches to treatment planning and discuss treatment options, interventions and how this links to change and cure. We will re-visit contracts in more depth and reflect on the complexity of three and multi cornered contracts, contracts in couples therapy and groups as well as Steiner’s four requirements for contracting. Brief therapy is explored and what time frames mean for both contracting and the therapeutic relationship. We will consider the limitations of brief therapy, as well as the benefits. Having set the backdrop, we will commence a process of exploration of the 3 major approaches/schools in TA, Classical, Re-decision and Cathexis in order for students to be able to begin to locate their own philosophical approach. These major schools will be explored in relation to individual, couple and individual therapy. Students will also critically reflect on what these approaches mean working relationally and with the core TA philosophical principles. This module will provide students with the opportunity to relate theory to practice as the theory is brought alive in skills practice sessions. These will take place throughout all year 2 workshops where live supervision of the skills practice will occur.

The purpose of the teaching and learning methods used is to facilitate the student’s ability to develop self-awareness, to offer alternative ways of thinking, feeling and behaving, so that the student becomes a robust, ethical and competent clinician with the ability to comprehend and appreciate a wide range of frames of reference.

To facilitate this process students can expect a variety of teaching and learning strategies, designed to support an integration of theory into practice, that will range from:

Didactic input
Teach back
Large and small Group discussion
Experiential exercises
Group Process
Skills sessions
Peer discussions and feedback
Personal therapy
Modelling way of being
Self-learning through reading
Journaling

The teaching throughout seeks to model by the trainers approach a contactful and contractual relationship and audio, visual and kinaesthetic learning preferences are catered for.

CORE TEXTS

Gilbert, Maria. & Shmukler, Diana (1998): Brief Therapy with Couples. An Integrated Approach. Wiley
Goulding, M., and Goulding, R. (1979): Changing Lives Through Redecision Therapy: New York Brunner-Mazel.
Hargaden, Helena and Sills, Charlotte (2002): Transactional Analysis, A Relational Perspective: Brunner-Routledge

Tudor, Keith (2001): Transactional Analysis Approaches to Brief Therapy: Brief Therapy Series
Woolams, Michael and Brown, Stan (1978) Transactional Analysis. A Modern and Comprehensive Text of TA Theory and Practice: Huron Valley Institute Press

EATA Ethics & Professional Practice (December 2022)
UKCP Code of Ethics and Professional Practice (October 2019)

ITAA Journal articles – these will be referenced prior to the commencement of each module in order to reflect the changing nature of current thinking and practice in Psychotherapy

Students should make their own arrangements, using SPTI guidance, to access a suitably qualified therapist to provide the required sessions of personal therapy. Please refer to the ‘Personal Therapy’ section within the programme handbook.
Access to a PTSTA/TSTA supervisor to provide the required sessions of supervision (at a minimum ratio of 1 to 6) using SPTI guidance.