Psychotherapy Development Research Center

Organization

The Center is organized around three major areas: core faculty, component projects, and training.

Core Faculty

Investigators in the Center have an extensive record of psychotherapy development research. Areas of investigation involve the development of new behavioral therapies, modification of existing approaches for special populations, combining treatments to improve outcomes, identifying mechanisms of actions that contribute to treatment effects, and conceptualizing clinical and methodological issues when conducting drug abuse psychotherapy research. Center faculty members have been directly involved in component projects at all three stages of research and have provided extensive consultation and training support to other investigators regionally and nationally. (Go to Faculty)

Component Projects

The Center funds Stage I and II psychotherapy development research projects (Go to Stage Model). Stage I projects involve both pilot projects to support rapid and systematic development of novel psychotherapeutic strategies and initial randomized controlled testing of innovative approaches that investigators already have shown to be feasible for further development and study. Current Center Stage I component projects are: 1) the development of a brief intervention to re-engage drug abusers who had entered treatment and then dropped out; 2) the application of contingency management for adolescent smoking cessation delivered within high schools; 3) the development and evaluation of computer-delivered, cognitive exercises to inhibit impulsive decision-making and behavior, and 4) development of a fMRI measure to detect basic CNS processes associated with craving for cocaine and gambling.

Stage II components projects are rigorously conducted systematic randomized controlled trials of drug abuse treatments. Current Center Stage II component projects are: 1) combining cognitive behavioral therapy and contingency management for outpatient cocaine abusers to maximize the efficacy of both treatments; and 2) increasing the frequencies of prize winning in contingency management for patients who begin treatment with cocaine-positive urine analyses and examining the effects of reinforcing treatment attendance on retention and treatment outcome. The Center has adopted a core battery of assessments and coordinated data management and analysis procedures to promote the successful conduct of these component projects (Go to Assessments).

Training

The Center investigators have an extensive record of training students and junior faculty in psychosocial substance abuse research and in providing consultation and training services to other investigators regionally and nationally. A variety of training programs exist at Yale which dovetails with Center activities. Please contact the Center to inquire about available training and consultation services. (Go to Training)

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