Practicing Psychotherapy in Constructed Reality

Stephen Bacon, PhD, is a practicing clinical psychologist in private practice in California.

Practicing Psychotherapy in Constructed Reality is a groundbreaking new book that challenges the psychotherapeutic orthodoxy in insightful and provocative ways. Stephen Bacon provides a systemic, scholarly analysis of the current state of psychotherapy as well as a profound and imaginative reconceptualization of why psychotherapy is indeed effective. He mines a rich trove of the psychological and philosophical literatures, peppered with clinical examples, to expose the inner workings of the profession, dispute some of our most cherished beliefs, and offer creative suggestions on how to be a powerful psychotherapy change agent.

• Introduction: Real Versus ConstructedPart I: The New Therapeutic MilieuChapter 1: Psychology’s Inconvenient TruthsChapter 2: Close Encounters with the AbyssChapter 3: Social ConstructionismChapter 4: A Place to StandChapter 5: The Nomological NetPart II: Enhancing Therapist EffectivenessChapter 6: Focus on the Therapist Chapter 7: Beginner’s Mind Chapter 8: Wizards among UsChapter 9: Apollonian Power: The Primacy of the Conscious MindChapter 10: IdentityChapter 11: Heart and SoulChapter 12: The Other Royal Road: Social Determinants of ChangeChapter 13: Dionysian Power: Sacred Space and Altered States Chapter 14: The Spiritual PathChapter 15: Becoming Remarkable Chapter 16: The Way Forward