Total Credits: 15
Classes are held 9:30am - 12:30pm CT on Monday, June 24 through Friday, June 28 at the University of Chicago Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice.
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is a cognitive behavioral therapy shown to be effective with persons who struggle with affective dysregulation. Originally developed to address the unique concerns of persons with a diagnosis of Borderline Personality Disorder, DBT is increasingly considered a trans-diagnostic approach to psychological distress. This comprehensive treatment aims at lifestyle transformation, rather than simply reducing self-defeating, even self-destructive behaviors. It is intensive therapy involving four clinical activities: skills training, individual psychotherapy, telephone consultation, and group consultation.
In this five-day, intensive training, DBT will be presented from a contextual behavioral perspective. Participants will consider the notion of workability, rather than rationality, as the outcome criteria for assessing efforts at creating a meaningful life. This will entail taking a functional approach to the therapeutic dialogue. From this perspective, verbal exchanges are evaluated in terms of the degree to which what is said and thought moves the “client” in the direction of what is important in life or not. The goal is to assist treatment seekers in making a shift in perspective from one focused on their past and their problems to one oriented toward their future and the person they aspire to be.
Throughout the sessions the instructor will use various strategies including didactic presentations, realplays, and question-and-answer to enhance learning of the various tenets of DBT. Tuition includes instruction and course manual.
Registration Deadline: June 20, 2024
Paul Holmes is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Chicago Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice. His focus is on advancing empirically-supported, contextually-based interventions such as Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT). In addition to DBT, his fields of interest include Contextual Behavior Theory and Therapy, mindfulness and psychotherapy, chronic distress, and issues related to substance abuse.
Holmes teaches courses including Fundamentals of Behavioral Therapy: Contemporary Approaches, Dialectical Behavior Therapy: Intervening with Persons who Experience Chronic Distress, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy.
In addition to teaching, Holmes is also the founder and managing partner/clinical director of the Emotion Management Program, LLC in Orland Park, IL. He provides Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and DBT to client populations. He also conducts training workshops and clinical consultation to public and private mental health providers.
He was previously a faculty member in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Chicago for twelve years.
After receiving his B.A. in Psychology from Olivet Nazarene University in Kankakee, Illinois, Holmes received his Psy.D. in Clinical Psychology from the Illinois School of Professional Psychology in 1993.
