The Research Journey of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)

With a Foreword by Steven C. Hayes. In 1986 the first research study investigating Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) was published. It aimed to determine if an early conceptualization of the ACT model could be used to treat depression. Since this seminal study, further investigations have been conducted across every imaginable psychological issue and the rate at which this research has emerged is impressive. This book describes the research journey that ACT has taken in the past 30 years. It also suggests, in light of the progress that has already been made, how ACT research should move forward in the coming decades.

Table of Contents:
Foreword; Steven C. Hayes Prologue PART I 1. The Need 2. The Three Waves 3. The History of ACT 4. Contextual Behavioural Science 5. The Importance of Empirical Research PART II 6. Depression 7. Anxiety Disorders 8. Serious Mental Illnesses 9. Substance Abues 10. Smoking Cessation 11. Eating Behaviour 12. Pain 13. Other Health Conditions 14. Work 15. The ACT Variety PART III 16. The Statistics 17. Conclusion

About the Author :
Dr. Nic Hooper is a Lecturer of Psychology at the University of the West of England (UWE), UK. He has published a number of empirical papers investigating Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and Relational Frame Theory (RFT), he speaks widely about ACT in the form of conference presentations and workshops, and he writes a popular blog (http://nichooper.com/blog). Dr. Andreas Larsson is a licensed clinical psychologist at his private practice in Stockholm, Sweden and Karolinska Institutet, Dpt of Clinical Neuroscience & Centre for Psychiatry Research and Education, Stockholm County Council. He also conducts research in collaboration with various institutions in Sweden and Europe, and he has facilitated a number of ACT/RFT workshops for both the general public and professionals.

Review :
'This book is for you if you are new to ACT and don't want to read a stack of empirical papers, while wanting to be sure that the therapy is scientifically supported. It covers key psychological domains in which ACT outcomes have been evaluated. You may be interested, for example in depression but not anxiety. Both are in here, with many others. These chapters provide a compelling and yet readable account of the benefits of ACT in terms of clinical outcomes. The authors have done the work for you in searching thoroughly through the evidence and contextualising the findings in terms of leading researchers and related issues. All you have to do is to read it.' - Dr. Yvonne Barnes-Holmes PhD, Author of Derived Relational Responding Applications for Learners with Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities 'This book is an important chapter of a yet unfinished and larger book: The story of how a few simple ideas (yes, few and simple!) can impact a whole area of science. Read and stay updated! And as you read I am pretty sure you will expect more to come.' - Dr. Niklas Törneke M.D., Author of Learning RFT and co-author of ABCs of human behavior 'The ACT Research Journey is a book every ACT enthusiast will want to have on their shelf. The book provides an accessible and concise delivery of the burgeoning ACT research to date. It is both impressive and inspiring to see the breath of ACT research in one document. The researcher profiles provide great tips for future work from seminal researchers in key areas. An excellent contribution from bright academics in the ACT field.' - Dr. Louise McHugh PhD, Author of The Self and Perspective Taking 'For anyone interested in the wealth of research that has transformed ACT into an evidence-based psychotherapy, this book is well worth a read. Written in an engaging and accessible style, it takes you through the nuts and bolts of ACT research, introduces you to the researchers themselves, and explains the history of ACT and the science behind it.' - Dr Russ Harris, author of The Happiness Trap & ACT Made Simple 'Every researcher and clinician has biases. Digesting a comprehensive body of empirical work is the key to testing the assumptions that lead to those biases. This book is essential because the authors offer a road map for understanding what we know (and don't know) about Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. There has never been a more opportune situation to form a sound judgment on the available research until now. Be a skeptic. Think for yourself. The science speaks for itself.' - Dr. Todd B. Kashdan, professor of psychology at George Mason University, USA and author of The Upside of Your Dark Side: Why being your whole self - not just your 'good' self - drives success and fulfillment. 'Hooper and Larsson's new book, The Research Journey of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, provides me with something I have wanted for a very, very long time: a comprehensive summary of virtually all of ACT's published empirical research. But it does more than that. It describes ACT's historical context and how it fits in to the broader world of psychotherapy, and it describes where future research is headed…….and it does it very well. If you are looking for a go-to resource that tells you where ACT comes from, how it's been used, how effective it's been, and where it's going, you've found it.' - Dr. J. T. Blackledge, author of Cognitive Defusion in Practice.