Argues that with suitable selection criteria and specified therapeutic techniques, short-term dynamic psychotherapy is both feasible and valuable. Contributors address the question of suitablity. In commenting on each others selection criteria, they reveal differences amongst themselves.

Traditionally, psychoanalytic treatment has been a lengthy endeavour, requiring a long-term commitment from patient and analyst, as well as vast financial resources. More recently, short-term approaches to psychoanalytic treatment have proliferated. One of the most well-known and thoroughly studied is the groundbreaking method of Intensive Short-term Dynamic Psychotherapy, developed by Dr. Habib Davanloo. Having trained directly with Dr. Davenloo, the author has written a clear, concise outline of the method that has come to be regarded as a classic in the field. The book is organised in a systematic fashion, analogous to the process of therapy itself, from initial contact through to termination and follow-up. Detailed clinical examples are presented throughout the text to illustrate how theory is translated into techniques of unparalleled power and effectiveness.

Short-term psychotherapy, although brief, is not ephemeral. In the decade or two of its existence, it has grown into a sturdy tree, and a sign of its maturity is the fact that it is now the subject of an increasing number of overview articles summarizing its literature and findings. Yet it remains a young and vigorous discipline. Its pioneers have not been elevated to a pantheon of venerable but mute immortals; on the contrary, they are to be found at the forefront of the field, actively contributing to the development of its theory and practice. This volume is ample testimony to their continued creativity. Dr. Sifneos has lectured and written extensively about short-term anxiety-provoking psychotherapy (STAPP). Based on psychoanalytic principles, STAPP aims to resolve pathological psychic conflicts and help those suffering from them to learn new ways of being in their most intimate relationships. It does so by actively focusing the patients' sights on their Oedipal problems, and its effectiveness (given a proper selection of subjects by specific criteria) has been amply documented in controlled clinical studies.