Causation and chance: Detection of deterministic and stochastic ingredients in psychotherapy processes

Tschacher, Wolfgang; Haken, Hermann (2020). Causation and chance: Detection of deterministic and stochastic ingredients in psychotherapy processes. Psychotherapy research, 30(8), pp. 1075-1087. Routledge 10.1080/10503307.2019.1685139

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A novel methodology for the empirical analysis of processes in psychotherapy was developed and tested. This method is based on the Fokker-Planck equation (FPE), a probabilistic model that detects the deterministic and stochastic components of a process. The deterministic component is given by the potential function underlying the process. The FPE application can be used to visualize the attractor (or in the case of multistability, attractors) of the dynamics, and the sources of stochasticity. The FPE app can also be employed in two-dimensional systems, for example, client's and therapist's coupled processes; then the method is run on the cross-correlations of the time series. Signatures were defined that merge the functions retrieved from the methodology into numerical values, and may serve to detect associations with conventional self-report measures of psychotherapy. The method was tested in a case series where client's and therapist's heart rate, heart rate variability and respiration were monitored in 20 psychotherapy sessions. The FPE app works well with time series of high resolution and adequate observation numbers, which renders it applicable to nonverbal and physiological time series.

Item Type:

Journal Article (Original Article)

Division/Institute:

04 Faculty of Medicine > University Psychiatric Services > University Hospital of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy > Translational Research Center
04 Faculty of Medicine > University Psychiatric Services > University Hospital of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy > Psychotherapy

UniBE Contributor:

Tschacher, Wolfgang

Subjects:

100 Philosophy > 150 Psychology
500 Science > 510 Mathematics

ISSN:

1050-3307

Publisher:

Routledge

Language:

English

Submitter:

Wolfgang Tschacher

Date Deposited:

18 Dec 2019 14:37

Last Modified:

05 Dec 2022 15:32

Publisher DOI:

10.1080/10503307.2019.1685139

PubMed ID:

31690229

BORIS DOI:

10.7892/boris.135580

URI:

https://boris.unibe.ch/id/eprint/135580

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