рrint ISSN: 2617-2682; online ISSN: 2707-3637; DOI:10.26697/ijsa IJSA LETTER TO THE EDITOR Therapeutic Competencies in Reducing Emotional and Social Distress after Cognitive Behavior Therapy Training Program Sabra Zizi E. I.1, Daigham Abdelmohsen I.2 1 Fayoum University, Egypt 2 Minia University, Egypt Received: 04.06.2020; Accepted: 25.06.2020; Published: 30.06.2020 Keywords: cognitive behavior therapy (CBT), emotional problems, social problems, CBT skills, cognitive therapy scale (CTS) Copyright: © 2020 Sabra Zizi E. I., Daigham Abdelmohsen I. Published by Archives of International Journal of Science Annals DOI and UDC DOI 10.26697/ijsa.2020.1.7; UDC 615.851.4:364.622 Conflict of interests: The authors declare that there is no conflict of interests Source of support: This study did not receive any outside funding or support. Information about Sabra Zizi Elsayed Ibrahim (Corresponding Author) – https://orcid.org/0000-0001- the authors: 8329-9615; zss11@fayoum.edu.eg; Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology, Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Arts, Fayoum University, Fayoum, Egypt. Daigham Abdelmohsen Ibrahim – https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6253-0005; Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology, Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Arts, Minia University, Minia, Egypt. Dear Editor! those psychologists to help students to cope with their Psychotherapeutic competence is conceptualized as a emotional and interpersonal problems. Supervision is therapist’s general and treatment-specific knowledge essential in learning cognitive behavior therapy. Despite level, skill level, and values or attitudes while the divergence in systems of psychotherapy, their goals implementing therapeutic interventions (Kühne, and varied training practices, supervision remains the Meister, Maaß, Paunov, & Weck, 2019). Assessment of one component considered essential to all (O’Donovan, psychotherapeutic competences are essential to training, Halford, & Walters, 2011). supervision, clients care, quality control, and life‐long This paper addresses the question: is a brief cognitive practice (Kühne, Lacki, Muse, & Weck, 2019). behavior therapy (CBT) training program enhances Assessment of therapeutic competence may provide psychologist's skills as reflected in scores on Cognitive therapists with formative and summative feedback and Therapy Skills scale and in helping students with may guide self-reflection (Muse & McManus, 2013). emotional and social problems. This study is interested in investigating how cognitive 35 school psychologists (20 Female and 15 male) have therapy training could help school psychologists to offer received intensive CBT training for 6 days during two better help for students known with emotional and social weeks followed by one to one supervision in school problems. School psychologists are capable to help sittings for three months. Participants completed students with their psychological problems, as they cognitive behavior therapy scale (CBTS) before and spend relatively long time with them and know about after training. Individual and group counseling sessions their strengths and weaknesses as well. Adjustment in delivered to male and female (age mean=13.7 years) school environment is very important and has a great students known of emotional and social problems during impact on student's overall adjustment and the current school year. Supervisors wrote a report in the psychological health. Cognitive behavior therapy is end of three months’ practice, students and parent’s known as an effective treatment for many of the feedback collected. psychological problems (Beck, 1993; Beck, 1997; Beck, Results show that differences between pre and post 2005; Beck, Baruch, Balter, Steer, & Warman, 2005). scores on CBTS scale are statistically significant but results depend on the therapists’ skill and (t=4.92), supervisors reports and students’ feedback competences (Kazantzis et al., 2018). Training could indicate improving therapeutic skills by the end of three enhance cognitive behavior therapy skills and enable months’ practice. 55 International Journal of Science Annals, Vol. 3, No. 1, 2020 CBT training program has positive influence in doi:10.1001/archpsyc.62.9.953 enhancing CBT skills in school psychologists that Beck, A. T. (1997). The past and future of cognitive reflected in providing effective counseling for students therapy. The Journal of Psychotherapy Practice with emotional and social problems. Supervision helped and Research, 6(4), 276–284. in optimizing the therapeutic outcome in both individual Kazantzis, N., Clayton, X., Cronin, T. J., Farchione, D., and group therapy sessions. Limburg, K., & Dobson, K. S. (2018). The cognitive therapy scale and cognitive therapy Acknowledgements scale-revised as measures of therapist We would like to express our deepest gratitude to competence in cognitive behavior therapy for Dr. Ahmed Gamal Alshereef for his efforts in depression: Relations with short and long term organizing and supervising activities during the program outcome. Cognitive Therapy and Research, and the following 6 months while the CBT counseling 42(4), 385–397. doi:10.1007/s10608-018-9919- was delivering to students at schools. 4 We would like to express our deepest gratitude to Kühne, F., Lacki, F. J., Muse, K., & Weck, F. (2019). Dr. Yuriy Melnyk for introducing this prestigious Strengthening competence of therapists‐in‐ Journal to us and encouraging us to publish our letter in training in the treatment of health anxiety the aforementioned Journal. (hypochondriasis): Validation of the assessment of core CBT skills (ACCS). Clinical Psychology Ethical Approval & Psychotherapy, 26(3), 319–327. The study protocol was consistent with the ethical doi:10.1002/cpp.2353 guidelines of the 1975 Declaration of Helsinki as Kühne, F., Meister, R., Maaß, U., Paunov, T., & reflected in a prior approval by the Institution’s Human Weck, F. (2020). How reliable are therapeutic Research Committee. competence ratings? Results of a systematic review and meta-analysis. Cognitive Therapy References and Research, 44(2), 241–257. Beck, A. T., Baruch, E., Balter, J. M., Steer, R. A., & doi:10.1007/s10608-019-10056-5 Warman, D. M. (2004). A new instrument for Muse, K., & McManus, F. (2013). A systematic review measuring insight: The beck cognitive insight of methods for assessing competence in scale. Schizophrenia Research, 68(2), 319–329. cognitive-behavioural therapy. Clinical doi:10.1016/S0920-9964(03)00189-0 Psychology Review, 33(3), 484–499. Beck, A. T. (1993). Cognitive therapy: Past, present, doi:10.1016/j.cpr.2013.01.010 and future. Journal of Consulting and Clinical O’Donovan, A., Halford, W. K., & Walters, B. (2011). Psychology, 61(2), 194–198. doi:10.1037/0022- Towards best practice supervision of clinical 006X.61.2.194 psychology trainees. Australian Psychologist, Beck, A. T. (2005). The current state of cognitive 46(2), 101–112. doi:10.1111/j.1742- therapy: A 40-year retrospective. Archives of 9544.2011.00033.x General Psychiatry, 62(9), 953–959. Cite this article as: Sabra, Z. E. I., & Daigham, A. I. (2020). Therapeutic Competencies in Reducing Emotional and Social Distress after Cognitive Behavior Therapy Training Program. International Journal of Science Annals, 3(1), 55–56. doi:10.26697/ijsa.2020.1.7 The electronic version of this article is complete and can be found online at: http://ijsa.culturehealth.org/en/arhiv This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en). 56