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Need Ideas for a strong conclusion on an essay about Psychotherapy (Adlerian and Reality)?

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By PD Tutor#1
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For a strong conclusion on a paper about psychotherapy, you could take several different approaches.  You could look at the history of psychotherapy and distinguish how modern psychotherapy differs from the historical practice of psychotherapy as popularized by Freud; you could take a position about the efficacy of psychotherapy as a treatment modality; or you could focus on how Adler looks at the whole person in psychoanalysis. 

Adler’s approach to psychoanalysis has four stages: engagement, assessment, insight, and reorientation.  You could conclude your essay by focusing on any of those four stages, by showing how the four stages are related, or by talking about how the four stages combine for what many refer to as a values clarification.  You could provide some examples of what such a values clarification would look in therapy.

If you discuss the various types of Adlerian therapy in your essay, you could conclude by determining whether you think it is the best therapeutic approach for one or more of those therapies.  For example, the approach is often used in couples’ therapy, however you might conclude that it is not a safe approach if there is domestic violence because it is a lengthy process and the victim could be exposed to unnecessary risk of danger while it is occurring. 

If you are looking specifically at reality therapy, a strong conclusion might focus on the somewhat controversial nature of the approach. Of all types of psychotherapy, Reality therapy may be most removed from classic Freudian psychoanalysis because it focuses on present-day choices instead of looking for root causes for chooses or behaviors.  Stating a strong opinion about the efficacy of such an approach, not only in terms of behaviors but also in terms of self-reported happiness or satisfaction from patients would put cap on that essay.

Of course, if your essay is focusing on both types of psychotherapy, then your conclusion paragraph probably needs to state a preference for one or the other because they are such different approaches.

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