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How does psychotherapy work? A case study in multilevel explanation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 June 2015

Rebecca Roache
Rebecca Roache*
Affiliation:
Department of Philosophy, Politics, and International Relations, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham TW20 0EX, United Kingdom. rebecca.roache@royalholloway.ox.ac.uk http://rebeccaroache.weebly.com
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Abstract

Multilevel explanations abound in psychiatry. However, formulating useful such explanations is difficult or (some argue) impossible. I point to several ways in which Lane et al. successfully use multilevel explanations to advance understanding of psychotherapeutic effectiveness. I argue that the usefulness of an explanation depends largely on one's purpose, and conclude that this point has been inadequately recognised in psychiatry.

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Type
Open Peer Commentary
Information
Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 38 , 2015 , e23
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Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2015 

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