Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

A Qualitative Evaluation of the Effects of Social Cognition and Interaction Training (SCIT) Versus Therapeutic Alliance Focused Therapy (TAFT) Among Persons With Serious Mental Illness

  • Original Article
  • Published:
International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Growing appreciation of the impact of social cognition deficits on social functioning among people with serious mental illness (SMI) has led to the development of interventions that target them. The purpose of the present study was to conduct a qualitative analysis of the effectiveness of two group interventions, social cognition and interaction therapy (SCIT) and therapeutic alliance focused therapy (TAFT), and to explore the processes and factors that contribute to the SCIT and TAFT outcomes. Thirty-two participants (16 participants from each group) were interviewed after completing the interventions. Content analysis based on grounded theory was conducted by two psychologists. The majority of participants experienced the intervention they completed as beneficial. The completers attributed the positive changes to several factors including professional information, therapeutic alliance, and their own agency. Comparison of the two groups revealed that SCIT completers were more likely to report changes in their experience of self and in their daily coping, while TAFT completers were more likely to report changes in the way they felt. Although not the majority, five completers from each group reported a positive change in their interpersonal relationships. Integrative and flexible approaches to psychotherapy, which combine common factors and elicit health including actions, are important in order to improve social cognition deficits among people with SMI.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Bateman, A., & Fonagy, P. (2001). Treatment of borderline personality disorder with psychoanalytically oriented partial hospitalization: An 18-month follow-up. American Journal of Psychiatry, 158(1), 36–42.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Brüne, M., Dimaggio, G., & Lysaker, P. H. (2011). Metacognition and social functioning in schizophrenia: Evidence, mechanisms of influence and treatment implications. Current Psychiatry Reviews, 7(3), 239–247.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Combs, D. R., Adams, S. D., Penn, D. L., Roberts, D., Tiegreen, J., & Stem, P. (2007). Social Cognition and Interaction Training (SCIT) for inpatients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders: Preliminary findings. Schizophrenia Research, 91(1–3), 112–116.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Combs, D. R., Penn, D. L., Tiegreen, J. A., Nelson, A., Ledet, S. N., & Basso, M. R. (2009). Stability and generalization of social cognition and interaction training (SCIT) for schizophrenia: Six-month follow-up results. Schizophrenia Research, 112, 196–197.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • de Jong, S., Hasson‐Ohayon, I., van Donkersgoed, R., Aleman, A., & Pijnenborg, G. H. M. (2018). A qualitative evaluation of the effects of Metacognitive Reflection and Insight Therapy: ‘Living more consciously’. Psychology and Psychotherapy: Theory, Research and Practice, 93(2), 223–240.

  • Dimaggio, G., Semerari, A., Carcione, A., Nicolō, G., & Procacci, M. (2007). Psychotherapy of personality disorders: Metacognition, states of mind and interpersonal cycles. Routledge.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Friedlander, M. L., Escudero, V., & Heatherington, L. (2006). Therapeutic alliances in couple and family therapy: An empirically informed guide to practice. American Psychological Association.

    Google Scholar 

  • Green, M. F., & Leitman, D. I. (2008). Social cognition in schizophrenia. Schizophrenia Bulletin, 34(4), 670–672.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hasson-Ohayon, I., Roe, D., & Kravetz, S. (2006). A qualitative approach to the evaluation of psychosocial interventions for persons with severe mental illness. Psychological Services, 3(4), 262.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hasson-Ohayon, I., Mashiach-Eizenberg, M., Avidan, M., Roberts, D., & Roe, D. (2014). Social Cognition and Interaction Training: Preliminary results of a RCT study in a community setting in Israel. Psychiatric Services, 65(4), 555–558.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hasson-Ohayon, I., Avidan-Msika, M., Mashiach-Eizenberg, M., Kravetz, S., Rozencwaig, S., Shalev, H., & Lysaker, P. H. (2015). Metacognitive and social cognition approaches to understanding the impact of schizophrenia on social quality of life. Schizophrenia Research, 161(2–3), 386–391.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hasson-Ohayon, I., Roe, D., Yanos, P., & Lysaker, P. H. (2016). The trees and the forest: Mixed methods in the assessment of psychosocial interventions’ processes and outcomes in psychiatry. Journal of Mental Health, 25(6), 543–549.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hasson-Ohayon, I., Arnon-Ribenfeld, N., Hamm, J. A., & Lysaker, P. H. (2017). Agency before action: The application of behavioral activation in psychotherapy with persons with psychosis. Psychotherapy, 54(3), 245.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hasson-Ohayon, I., Mashiach-Eizenberg, M., Lavi-Rotenberg, A., & Roe, D. (2019). Randomized controlled trial of adjunctive social cognition and interaction training (SCIT), adjunctive therapeutic alliance focused therapy (TAFT) and treatment as usual among persons with serious mental illness. Frontiers in Psychiatry

  • Johnson, R. B., & Onwuegbuzie, A. J. (2004). Mixed methods research: A research paradigm whose time has come. Educational Researcher, 33(7), 14–26.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lahera, G., Benito, A., Montes, J. M., Fernandez-Liria, A., Olbert, C. M., & Penn, D. L. (2013). Social cognition and interaction training (SCIT) for outpatients with bipolar disorder. Journal of Affective Disorder, 146(1), 132–136.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Landolt, K., Rössler, W., Burns, T., Ajdacic-Gross, V., Galderisi, S., Libiger, J., ... Fleischhacker, W. W. (2012). Unmet needs in patients with first-episode schizophrenia: A longitudinal perspective. Psychological Medicine, 42(7), 1461–1473

  • Levy-Frank, I., Hasson-Ohayon, I., Kravetz, S., & Roe, D. (2011). Family psychoeducation and therapeutic alliance focused interventions for parents of a daughter or son with a severe mental illness. Psychiatry Research, 189(2), 173–179.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Levy-Frank, I., Hasson-Ohayon, I., Kravetz, S., & Roe, D. (2012). A narrative evaluation of a psychoeducation and a therapeutic alliance intervention for parents of persons with a severe mental illness. Family Process, 51(2), 265–280.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lombard, M., Snyder-Duch, J., & Bracken, C. C. (2002). Content analysis in mass communication: Assessment and reporting of intercoder reliability. Human Communication Research, 28(4), 587–604.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leonhardt, B. L., Hamm, J. A., Fogley, R. L., Buck, K. D., Roe, D., & Lysaker, P. H. (2015). Allowing for psychosis to be approachable and understandable as a human experience: A role for the humanities in psychotherapy supervision. American Journal of Psychotherapy, 69(1), 35–51.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lysaker, P. H., & Klion, R. E. (2017). Recovery, meaning-making, and severe mental illness: A comprehensive guide to metacognitive reflection and insight therapy. Routledge.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Moritz, S., Vitzthum, F., Randjbar, S., Veckenstedt, R., & Woodward, T. S. (2010). Detecting and defusing cognitive traps: Metacognitive intervention in schizophrenia. Current Opinion in Psychiatry, 23(6), 561–569.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pinkham, A. E., Penn, D. L., Green, M. F., Buck, B., Healey, K., & Harvey, P. D. (2014). The social cognition psychometric evaluation study: Results of the expert survey and RAND Panel. Schizophrenia Bulletin, 40(4), 813–823.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ridgewell, C., Blackford, J. U., McHugo, M., & Heckers, S. (2017). Personality traits predicting quality of life and overall functioning in schizophrenia. Schizophrenia Research, 182, 19–23.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roberts, D. L., & Penn, D. L. (2009). Social cognition and interaction training (SCIT) for outpatients with schizophrenia: A preliminary study. Psychiatry Research, 166(2–3), 141–147.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roberts, D. L., Penn, D. L., & Combs, D. L. (2006). Social cognition and interaction training manual. Unpublished manuscript.

  • Roberts, D. L., Penn, D. L., & Combs, D. R. (2015). Social cognition and interaction training (SCIT): Group psychotherapy for schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders, clinician guide. Oxford University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Roberts, D. L., Penn, D. L., Labate, D., Margolis, S. A., & Sterne, A. (2010). Transportability and feasibility of social cognition and interaction training (SCIT) in community settings. Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy, 38(1), 35–47.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roe, D., Hasson-Ohayon, I., Salyers, M. P., & Kravetz, S. (2009). A one year follow-up of illness management and recovery: Participants’ accounts of its impact and uniqueness. Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal, 32(4), 285.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sale, J. E., Lohfeld, L. H., & Brazil, K. (2002). Revisiting the quantitative-qualitative debate: Implications for mixed-methods research. Quality and Quantity, 36(1), 43–53.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Slade, M. (2009). Personal recovery and mental illness: A guide for mental health professionals. Cambridge University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Strauss, A., & Corbin, J. (1994). Grounded theory methodology. Handbook of Qualitative Research, 17, 273–285.

    Google Scholar 

  • Thomas, E. C., Despeaux, K. E., Drapalski, A. L., & Bensnett, M. (2018). Person-oriented recovery of individuals with serious mental illnesses: A review and meta-analysis of longitudinal findings. Psychiatric Services, 69(3), 259–267.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Turner-Brown, L. M., Perry, T. D., Dichter, G. S., Bodfish, J. W., & Penn, D. L. (2008). Brief report: Feasibility of social cognition and interaction training for adults with high functioning autism. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 38(9), 1777–1784.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wampold, B. E., & Imel, Z. E. (2015). The great psychotherapy debate: The evidence for what makes psychotherapy work. Routledge.

    Book  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the participating centers: Summit, Shel, Enosh, and Kineret.

Funding

This study was funded by a grant from the Israel Science Foundation to the 2nd and 4th authors.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Bar-Ilan University, Max ve-Anna Webb st., 5290002, Ramat Gan, Israel

    Adi Lavi-Rotenberg, Maia Asher & Ilanit Hasson-Ohayon

  2. Department of Community Mental Health, Faculty of Social Welfare and Health Sciences, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel

    David Roe

  3. Department of Clinical Medicine, Psychiatry, Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark

    David Roe

Authors
  1. Adi Lavi-Rotenberg
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. David Roe
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Maia Asher
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Ilanit Hasson-Ohayon
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Adi Lavi-Rotenberg.

Ethics declarations

Ethics Approval

The study was approved by the ethics committee of the Department of Psychology at Bar-Ilan University in Israel, and was performed in accordance with the ethical standards as laid down in the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments. Informed consent was obtained from all patients for being included in the study.

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare no competing interests.

Additional information

Publisher’s note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Lavi-Rotenberg, A., Roe, D., Asher, M. et al. A Qualitative Evaluation of the Effects of Social Cognition and Interaction Training (SCIT) Versus Therapeutic Alliance Focused Therapy (TAFT) Among Persons With Serious Mental Illness. Int J Ment Health Addiction 21, 638–649 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11469-021-00665-1

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11469-021-00665-1

Keywords

Search

Navigation