Recovery, Meaning-Making, and Severe Mental Illness

Paul H. Lysaker, PhD, is a clinical psychologist and professor of clinical psychology in the Department of Psychiatry at the Indiana University School of Medicine. He has studied and provided psychotherapy to adults with serious mental illness for over 30 years. Dr. Lysaker is an author of over 400 peer-reviewed articles and a member of the editorial boards of multiple professional journals. Reid E. Klion, PhD, is a clinical psychologist and the chief operating officer of the MERIT Institute. His previous positions include assistant professor of psychiatry at the Indiana University School of Medicine and chief science officer at Performance Assessment Network, Inc. Dr. Klion has done work in areas ranging from psychotherapy to industrial-organizational psychology and test publishing.

"This is a fascinating, innovative, and very instructive book about how practitioners can assist people with severe mental illness on their road toward self-directed recovery. The individualized approach on meaning-making and the patient’s unique experience fills a void in current treatment literature based on symptom-focused interventions. The authors convey a convincing theoretical and clinical rationale for the MERIT treatment model along with an inspiring variety of tools."Anne-Kari Torgalsbøen, PhD, professor, Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Norway "People with severe mental illnesses have long been marginalized by society with little hope of getting access to treatment that may help them not only to cope with their signs and symptoms, but also to lead meaningful and satisfactory lives. Recovery, Meaning-Making, and Severe Mental Illness is an in-depth guide for practitioners who seek to empower patients in their endeavor to achieve recovery. Written in a compassionate style, the book encompasses outstanding expertise and skillful therapeutic guidance – clinicians will love it." Martin Brüne, MD, PhD, professor of psychiatry, Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany

• List of Tables Preface About the Authors Section I: Theoretical, Empirical, and Clinical Framework of MERIT 1. Introduction 2. Metacognitive Impairment and Serious Mental Illness 3. Understanding the Process of Metacognition 4. Assessing Metacognition and its Role in Severe Mental Illness Section II: Preconditions for MERIT and the Eight Core Elements 5. Preconditions for Implementing MERIT6. Overview of the MERIT’s Elements and Element 1: The Agenda 7. Element 2: Insertion of the Therapist’s Mind 8. Element 3: Eliciting the Narrative Episode 9. Element 4: Defining the Psychological Problem 10. Element 5:Reflecting on the Therapeutic Relationship 11. Element 6: Reflecting on Progress 12. The MERIT-IF and Assessment Metacognition During Sessions 13. Element 7: Stimulating Self-Reflection (S) and Awareness of the Other (O) 14. Element 8: Stimulating Mastery (M) Section III: Implementation, Clinical and Technical Issues 15. Practical Treatment Considerations and Learning MERIT 16. Common Clinical Issues 17. MERIT: Past and Future Appendices Appendix I. MERIT Intervention Framework (MERIT-IF) Appendix II. The MERIT Therapist Adherence Scale (MERIT-TAS)