The Cognitive Behavioural Analysis System of Psychotherapy (CBASP) is the only psychotherapy model developed specifically for chronic depression. In the latest addition to the successful Distinctive Features series, the developer of CBASP, James P. McCullough Jr., along with Elisabeth Schramm and J. Kim Penberthy, provides an accessible introduction to this approach, showing how it differs from other cognitive behavioural approaches, and highlighting those features - both theoretical and practical - that make it unique.

The unparalleled problems of the chronically depressed patient are some of the most difficult that practitioners face. The disorder has usually continued for a decade or more and patients enter psychotherapy interpersonally withdrawn, detached and with little or no motivation to change. CBASP as A Distinctive Treatment for Persistent Depressive Disorder provides a new look into the phenomenological world of the patient and shows the reader why the world-view of the patient is a valid perception of reality.

CBASP is designed to address the problems of the patient in a step-by-step manner. This book explores the therapist role and shows how the CBASP model enables therapists to address the patient's depression in a zone of interpersonal safety. Patients are taught how to behave in an interpersonally facilitative manner and shown how everything they do has consequences for others (including the therapist) and on the social environment in which they live. CBASP as A Distinctive Treatment for Persistent Depressive Disorder will be essential reading for novice and experienced CBT therapists, counselors and psychotherapists treating chronic depression.

"CBASP, developed by Dr. James P. McCullough Jr., is the only treatment specifically targeted for persistent forms of depression. Its efficacy has now been demonstrated in several clinical trials. This volume clearly and concisely explains how CBASP differs from more traditional forms of cognitive behaviour therapy, and describes its clinical application. This book will be invaluable for all clinicians and trainees who treat patients with persistent depression, and for all mental health professionals who are interested in extensions of the standard CBT model." - Daniel N. Klein, Professor and Chair, Department of Psychology, Stony Brook University "James P. McCullough, Jr.'s work is a beacon for clinicians and researchers struggling to understand and treat chronically depressed individuals. This book is a "must read" for mental health professionals working with these often misunderstood and underserved patients." - Todd K. Favorite, Ph.D., Director, University of Michigan Psychological Clinic, Assistant Professor, U of M Medical School, Dept. of Psychiatry