This article presents a panel discussion on the development of collaborative empiricism in cognitive behaviour therapy. The panel comprised experts in research and practice who had been invited as keynote presenters for the 33rd National Conference for the Australian Association of Cognitive and Behaviour Therapy. Experts responded to questions about the definition of collaborative empiricism, how this specific relationship construct facilitates meaningful therapeutic changes, and their discussion conveyed the importance of collaborative empiricism for effective therapy. The dialogue included suggestions and strategies for developing therapeutic relationships strong in collaboration and empiricism.

Cognitive-Behaviour Therapy (CBT) is considered the number one non-pharmacological treatment for a number of mental and psychological disorders (Tolin, 2010; Stuhlmiller & Tolchard, 2009). While CBT with problem gamblers has shown promise, the quality of the research in this area is lacking. One area of concern is that across the many trials and reports using CBT with gamblers no single unified approach has been used and so comparison across studies is limited. Similarly, translation of the CBT research into clinical practice is almost entirely absent (Walker, 2005). This article will explore the concepts of CBT with problem gamblers and identify common elements across all reported approaches. A unified model of CBT with problem gamblers will be suggested and the direct clinical application of this model described from a state-wide gambling service in Australia (Flinders Approach) with 205 problem gamblers. The results indicate that the Flinders Approach is successful in treating gamblers considered to be at the severest end of the experience, with a 69% completion rate. Implications for future research in which this model may be tested against other therapies and pharmacological treatments will be discussed.

Deliberate self-harm (DSH), commonly defined as the intentional, direct and non-suicidal destruction of one's body, appears to be common across both clinical and non-clinical populations. A recently developed measure of functions of DSH, the Inventory of Statements About Self-Injury (ISAS), was examined to test its two-factor model within a sample of members of online social networks. The approach adopted was to fit data from the scale to the Rasch measurement model, which is increasingly used to develop and/or assess scales. Two hundred and one (n = 201) participants aged over 18 years of age, who had engaged in DSH in the last 12 months, were recruited from online social networks’ DSH peer support groups to complete an online survey. An exploratory factor analysis supported interpersonal and intrapersonal factors based on 13 function domains. Furthermore, both factors demonstrated satisfactory fit to the Rasch model. Some local dependency was detected, and when addressed, it impacted on the alpha coefficient level for intrapersonal factor. This study is the first independent psychometric investigation of ISAS, further supporting the scale authors’ psychometric evaluations. Additional validation across different DSH samples is recommended.

Although positive metacognitive beliefs have been found to be associated with symptoms of depression and generalised anxiety disorder, surprisingly few studies have focused on the degree to which positive metacognitive beliefs are associated to social phobia symptoms. In response to this limitation, the primary goal of the current study was the development and validation of the Positive Beliefs about Post-Event Processing Questionnaire (PB-PEPQ). It was anticipated that the PB-PEPQ would exhibit adequate psychometric properties. Based on a non-referred sample of 300 undergraduate students, the PB-PEPQ was found to be positively associated with measures of post-event processing and social anxiety symptoms. Further, support was found for the incremental validity of the PB-PEPQ, as the measure predicted variance in social phobia symptoms after controlling for other metacognitive variables, including positive beliefs about worry and positive beliefs about rumination. Overall, the findings may have implications for cognitive models of social phobia. Further, the current findings have possible treatment implications, as individuals with social phobia may benefit from interventions focused on the identification and modification of positive metacognitive beliefs.

Feeding problems that can lead to associated nutritionally related medical conditions and often cause stress and difficulties for parents are prevalent in children with autism. It is therefore important to target these problem behaviours through effective interventions. The present study was designed to trial a procedure comprised of escape extinction combined with positive reinforcement with the aim to reduce food refusals and increase eating in a child with autism. It was predicted that the intervention package would significantly reduce food refusals and increase eating and that any increase in food acceptance would be maintained and generalised to other behaviours related to feeding on termination of the intervention. The research design was a multiple baseline across settings. The results confirmed our predictions. It was concluded that the treatment package was effective at increasing food acceptance.