The single case archive: Review of a multitheoretical online database of published peer-reviewed single-case studies.

Case study methods are increasingly recognized as crucial methods to enhance understanding of the complexity of psychotherapy processes and as way to bridge the science-practice gap. The Single Case Archive (SCA) was constructed to facilitate access to the existing field of case study research for academic, clinical, and educational purposes. Cases were selected through systematic screening of relevant peer-reviewed journals in the field of psychotherapy research and rigorous snowball sampling.

Interpersonal dynamics and therapeutic relationship in patients with functional somatic syndromes: A metasynthesis of case studies.

Patients with functional somatic syndromes (FSS) often display troubled relationships with health care providers, psychotherapists, and significant others. Research shows that patients' history of trauma, attachment disturbances, and mentalization deficits may result in the emergence of maladaptive interpersonal patterns, which may later contribute to the onset and maintenance of FSS, "doctor hopping," and dropout in psychotherapy. As the nature and therapeutic consequences of such maladaptive interpersonal patterns in FSS cannot be understood sufficiently by quantitative methods alone, there is a need for in-depth qualitative research.

Countertransference Processes in Psychodynamic Therapy with Dependent (Anaclitic) Depressed Patients: A Qualitative Study Using Supervision Data.

Although Blatt's two-polarity model of depression has suggested that patients' interpersonal styles may shape countertransference phenomena in psychotherapy, empirical research on this topic has remained scarce. This article provides an in-depth study of countertransference processes in clinical work with dependent (anaclitic) depressed patients using a qualitative methodology. Thematic analysis of narrative material of psychodynamic therapists discussing patient cases during supervision ( = 7) resulted in four recurrent themes: "empathy, compassion, and support," "anxiety, feeling overwhelmed, and protection," "frustration, irritation, and confrontation," and "inadequacy, incompetence, and fatalism.

Beyond Clinical Case Studies in Psychoanalysis: A Review of Psychoanalytic Empirical Single Case Studies Published in ISI-Ranked Journals.

Single case studies are at the origin of both theory development and research in the field of psychoanalysis and psychotherapy. While clinical case studies are the hallmark of psychoanalytic theory and practice, their scientific value has been strongly criticized. To address problems with the subjective bias of retrospective therapist reports and uncontrollability of clinical case studies, systematic approaches to investigate psychotherapy process and outcome at the level of the single case have been developed.