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ABSTRACT: Constructivism represents a profound development within cognitivism, posing challenges to many traditional treatment assumptions. The author addresses the remarkable difference between traditional cognitive therapy and constructivism, including the nature of reality, the nature of knowledge, problem definition, treatment goals, assessment, treatment of emotion, and therapist style of intervention. Constructivist metatheory is briefly discussed along with the conceptual bases of the orientation. Constructivist therapy is contrasted with traditional cognitive therapy, and constructivist intervention methods are identified. The article concludes with several case examples in which constructivist methods are applied to clinical problems. COGNITIVISM HAS ACHIEVED widespread acceptance among practitioners and theoreticians across the helping professions. Initially labeled revolutionary (Baars, 1986; Dember, 1974; Mahoney, 1977), the movement has matured, producing expanded and detailed conceptualizations of cognitive content, process, and structure. This "evolution within the revolution" (Mahoney, 1991, Mahoney & Lyddon, 1988) has spawned diverse methods to treat specific disorders (Beck, Freeman, & Associates, 1990; Beck, Rush, Shaw, & Emery, 1979; Granvold, 1994a; Kingdon & Turkington, 1994; Linehan, 1993; Wilson & Fairburn, 1993). One of the most profound developments within cognitivism is the emergence of constructivism. Constructivism represents a formidable challenge to the assumptions about reality, knowledge, and causality supporting traditional cognitive therapy.
This challenge has resulted in the development of dramatically alternative definitions of "problem" and dysfunction, treatment goals, therapist behavior, assessment methods, treatment procedures, outcome research, and other aspects of human-change process. The application of this "new way of conceptualizing" has resulted in the development of constructivist therapy, described by Anderson (1990) as "not so much a technique as a philosophical context within which therapy is done, and more a product of zeitgeist than the brainchild of any single theorist" (p. 137). This article is devoted to an overview of constructivist metatheory, an elucidation of the conceptual bases and treatment practice of constructivist therapy vis-a-vis traditional cognitive therapy, and an introduction to several constructivist intervention methods.
Constructivist Metatheory
A metatheory is a related group of theories sharing assumptions and assertions. The cardinal assertion of constructivism is that human knowing is proactive. People are active participants in the creation of their own reality. Ontologically, constructivism stands in contrast to realism. According to realism, a singular, stable external reality can be known; constructivism asserts that "humans actively...