Emotion-Focused Therapy for Depression: Canadian Contributions

The theory and research on emotion-focused therapy (EFT) for depression is reviewed to highlight Canadian contributions to research in depression. We describe how depression is understood within EFT and review studies that examined its effectiveness in the treatment of depression and illuminate the important role of working with emotion to facilitate change. EFT initially known as process-experiential therapy is an empirically supported treatment for depression. In EFT, emotions are seen as fundamental to the construction of the self, providing an immediate source of information by means of a preconscious, automatic evaluation of stimuli. This system provides information and action tendencies and a gut response that helps people discriminate among competing options, adapt to environments, and promote well-being. In this article, we present three randomized clinical trials that examined the efficacy of EFT in the treatment of depression and review research on the processes and mechanisms of change in this form of treatment. Our review provides empirical support for the underlying mechanisms of change in EFT including optimal emotional processing, how clients make sense of their experiences by integrating cognition and emotion, the therapeutic relationship conditions, as well as specific emotion-focused techniques used in the treatment of depression. Public Significance Statement This article presents a review of the research on emotion-focused therapy (EFT) in the treatment of depression that has been conducted in Canada, including studies of its effectiveness and the mechanisms of change. This research is important as its highlights that EFT is an effective treatment for depression and reveals the important role of emotional processing and relational factors in the process of change. An increased understanding of the mechanisms of change in EFT is vital to enhance therapeutic outcomes.