Relationship and Psychotherapy Lab at the University of Denver

Relationship and Psychotherapy (RAP) Lab at the University of Denver. The mission of the RAP lab is to examine the pathways for healing and growth for individuals, couples, and families via psychological interventions. Through research and training the RAP lab members explore the how and why psychotherapy works, with a specific focus on therapists’ role in creating effective and engaging processes, the optimal interplay between techniques and relational dynamics to enhance therapy outcomes, and the unique cultural dynamics that influence the psychotherapy processes. Dr. Owen leads the lab, which consists of 15 members who conduct research with our clinic partners. The RAP lab has multiple clinical partners, including SonderMind, Inc where he is the Senior Research Advisor. SonderMind has therapists in nearly all 50 states (n > 9,000) and will be a partner for recruitment of therapists for this study. He is also the research director of Celesthealth who has a network of over 70 mental health centers that collaborate with the RAP lab for research purposes. RAP also collaborates locally with the Educational and Psychological Center at the University of Denver, which is an outpatient training community mental health center located on the campus. The clinic provides training opportunities for approximately 70 master and doctoral students each year who provide clinical services to clients that receive fee reductions and subsidies due to economic need. Through these partnerships, the RAP lab is uniquely positioned to launch large-scale training and intervention research projects that maximize diversity among providers, treatment settings, and client populations.

 

Therapist burnout is a pervasive issue in the mental health field, with estimates ranging from 40% to 78% of therapists experiencing its debilitating effects. Burnout can lead to lowered psychological well-being, decreased workplace engagement, and negative impacts on physical health and professional functioning. Consequently, therapist burnout not only affects the therapists themselves but can also lead to poorer client outcomes and negatively impact the therapeutic alliance. Despite the prevalence and consequences of burnout, there is a lack of effective interventions to prevent it and promote flourishing among therapists. Existing burnout prevention studies primarily focus on continuing education or supervision and often suffer from small sample sizes and a lack of connection to relational virtues and eudaimonic well-being. Relational virtues, such as humility, gratitude, and forgiveness, have been shown to be beneficial in transforming negative affective states into positive ones. These virtues can help therapists regulate their emotions, enhance empathy and genuineness in sessions, and cultivate greater curiosity and openness to feedback. In non-therapeutic settings, relational virtues are linked to positive mental and physical health outcomes, including eudaimonic well-being and a sense of relatedness. Researchers have found that the expression of gratitude can have positive effects on a person receiving the gratitude as well as the person delivering the gratitude. There are many possibilities why the effects of expressing gratitude might be mutually beneficial, for instance it could shift focus from the negative to a broader understanding, activate prosocial and sense of meaning, promote one’s sense of efficacy in helping others. Similarly, expressing other relational virtues (e.g., humility, forgiveness) have been shown to provide meaning and personal growth. These effects are akin to research on the effects of helping others while feeling distressed or depressed. Therapists may benefit from engaging relational virtues to assist clients as well as to prevent burnout and enhance their own sense of flourishing. This project aims to address the gap in effective interventions for therapist burnout and promote flourishing through a novel approach: consultation focused on relational virtues. The project will develop and evaluate Consult-RVE (Consultation-Relational Virtue Engagement), a five-module training program designed to train consultants in core domains of burnout and flourishing, as well as consultation skills. Therapists will be paired up with a Consult-RVE coach to help tailor the lessons to their practice/life contexts. These sessions will be evaluated via consultation/supervisory measures.