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Information on Fall conferences coming soon!

Weekend Workshops below

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All classes are appropriate for licensed therapists that practice individual psychotherapy or analysis. Students are also welcome.

2008 Spring Case Conferences

Clinical Case Conference Seminar (formerly How Psychotherapy Works)
Peter Schumacher, MFT
February 4 - May 19, 2008, Mondays, 10:30 - 12:00 noon (18 CE hours)*
SFPRG, 9 Funston Avenue, The Presidio, San Francisco
This class will use presentations by the participants and directed readings to understand both Control Mastery theory and its application to the participants' clinical cases.
By the end of the case conference, participants will be able to: 1) analyze how the therapeutic process works according to Control Mastery theory and how to carefully make hypotheses about the patient's problems from the first several sessions, 2) develop their own style of interacting with their patients in a way that is maximally beneficial, and 3) interpret the meaning and origin of the patient's symptoms and character disorders.

Wednesday Case Study Group
Norman Sohn, Ph.D.,LCSW, & Alan Rappoport, Ph.D.
February 6 - June 4, 2008, Wednesdays, 9:00 - 10:00 am (16 CE hours)*
SFPRG, 9 Funston Avenue, The Presidio, San Francisco
In this course we study psychotherapy cases as a way of educating ourselves about the therapeutic process. We will follow cases verbatim, and form and test hypotheses regarding the nature of the interactions between therapist and client. We will attempt to understand how the interactional process may be furthering and/or hindering the client's progress, and will also evaluate how well Control Mastery principles help us understand the client and the therapy. In this semester's course we will continue our study of tape-recordings of a psychotherapy conducted by telephone.
By the end of the class participants will be able to: 1) evaluate what kinds of interactions may be helpful and unhelpful in psychotherapy, 2) use Control Mastery theory to understand the nature of passed tests and pro-plan interpretations and how the patient may respond to them, 3) develop and test hypotheses about the therapeutic process.

The Therapeutic Process
Steven Foreman, M.D.
February 6 - June 11, 2008, Wednesdays, 2:30-4:00 pm (25 CE hours)*
SFPRG, 9 Funston Avenue, The Presidio, San Francisco
The purpose of this course is to deepen our understanding of the therapeutic process for adults, children, and couples, and of the ways the psychotherapist may help the patient make progress. This seminar will use continuous case presentations, along with selected readings and group discussions, to increase participants' understanding of how to apply Control Mastery theory to a range of cases and treatment issues. Thus, its goals are both practical (to help the therapist in his/her daily work) and theoretical (to enrich the participants understanding of the meaning of broad concepts and principles and their application to work with clients). We will give special attention to how the therapeutic relationship is affecting client progress.
By the end of the class, participants will be able to: 1) explain the therapeutic process from a Control Mastery perspective and discuss how the psychotherapist actually contributes to the patient's progress, 2) analyze the sequential unfolding of the therapeutic process over an extended period of treatment, and 3) detect connections between the therapist's attitudes, actions and interpretations on the patient's progress and/or resistance.

Psychotherapy from a Control Mastery Perspective (East Bay)
Michael Lowenstein, M.D.
January 18 - June 6, 2008, Fridays, 9:30 - 11:00 am (27 CE Hours)*
Dr. Lowenstein's Office in the East Bay- Call (925) 258-9302 for details
This course is designed to illustrate the principles of Control Mastery theory by applying the theory to participants' own cases. Several cases will be followed, and several participants will be invited to present case materials. Cases will be examined thoroughly in order to delineate the aspects of the therapeutic process which appear to be helpful, as well as "difficult to treat" cases. Reading will be used to provide a framework for Control Mastery theory.
By the end of the class participants will be able to: 1) apply Control Mastery theory to their work with patients in order to understand a patient's psychological problems, 2) infer what kinds of interventions will be helpful to the particular patient,
3) Formulate how to track the process and progress of treatment, and 4) develop and enhance their clinical skills so that the individual therapist can creatively solve clinical problems according to their individual strengths.

The Joy of Therapy (East Bay)
Helene Goldberg, Ph.D.
January 10 -June 5, 2008, Thursdays, 2:30 - 4pm (31 CE hours)*
Dr. Goldberg's Office in the East Bay- Call (510) 524-7833 for details
This course will explore the nature of the therapeutic relationship and especially how the therapist can use his/her enjoyment of that relationship to help the patient. As therapists we've inherited a long tradition of anxiety about gratifying either our patients or ourselves. We've been made to feel guilty about colluding with patient defenses, encouraged to develop an exaggerated concern about maintaining the frame, been taught to overvalue our supposed neutrality, and pushed to end up phobic about any feelings of affection toward our patients. It's no wonder many therapists begin to experience burnout or find themselves mired in therapeutic impasses with their patients.
Of course professional boundaries are essential, but, when exaggerated, these concerns can create rigid barriers between the therapist and the patient that interferes with the therapeutic process and stops us from enjoying the therapeutic relationship.
This class will include some reading, including a close examination of Hal Sampson's "Treatment by Attitudes", and a lot of clinical case material. Our goal will be to develop case formulations and increase our understanding of the patient's unconscious plan to help the us balance authentic boundaries with the spontaneity and genuine feeling that makes the therapy come alive.

Participants will learn to:
1) Analyze how psychotherapy works according control-mastery theory, 2) Hypothesize case formulations and identify patients' plans and pathogentic beliefs from early sessions of the treatment, 3) Use ideas in Hal Sampson's "Treatment by Attitude" to guide the therapist in creating a beneficial therapeutic relationship, 4) Track therapeutic progress by noting patients' behavior in and out of the sessions, 5) Develop a personal style of interacting with patients that allows for maximal benefit.

Friday Afternoon 2pm Research Group
Marshall Bush, PhD
January 18 - April 25, 2008, Fridays, 2:00 - 3:00 pm (14 CE Hours)*
SFPRG, 9 Funston Avenue, The Presidio, San Francisco - no cost.
This course is intended for SFPRG group members and graduate students who would like to participate in the task of designing and carryign out a variety of new clinical research projects.
By the end of the class participants will be learn to: 1) implement new research project to expand, validate and correct (if necessary) Control Mastery Theory, 2)to systemize and operationalize the basic principles of Control Mastery Theory so that it can be validated as an empirically supported theory,
3)to identify the convergences and divergences of Control Mastery Theory to other theories of therapy, 4) to develop a Control Mastery Theory approach for understanding and treating specific clinic populations, 5) to develop process and outcome measures for studying the case of AR.

* Continuing Education credit earned on an hour for hour basis. These are maximum offered if no class is missed.

Saturday Workshops - Spring 2008
Pre-registration prices listed - cost increases by $20. one week before class.

Introduction to Control Mastery Theory - SOLD OUT!
Steve Foreman,MD, Jan Schreiber,PhD, George Silberschatz,PhD
Saturday, March 1, 2008, 9 am - 4:30 pm (6 CE hours) At San Francisco Jewish Community Center, 2nd Fl., California St at Presidio Ave.
$50 Members/$50 Nonmembers/$20 students
This seminar is an introduction to Control Mastery Theory of psychotherapy, developed by Dr Joseph Weiss and Dr Harold Sampson and empirically tested by the San Francisco Psychotherapy Research Group. Participants will learn how pathogenic beliefs may be formed, how patients test their therapists, and how patients get better.

*Continuing Education credit has been approved for all of the listed classes.

L.C.S.W.s/M.F.C.C.s: SFPRG is a provider approved by the Board of Behavioral Sciences, Provider Number PCE104, for CE credit on an hour-for-hour basis.
PSYCHIATRISTS: SFPRG is accredited by the Institute for Medical Quality/California Medical Association (IMQ/CMA) to provide continuing medical education for physicians. SFPRG takes responsibility for the content, quality and scientific integrity of this CME activity. Physicians attending this Workshop may report, on an hour-for-hour basis, AMA PRA Category 1 credit.
PSYCHOLOGISTS: SFPRG is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. SFPRG maintains responsibility for these programs and their contents.

Cancellation and Refund Policy

If you cancel 15 days or more before a program, your fee will be refunded, minus a $25.00 administrative fee, or you may apply the amount paid to another program(s) with no penalty. If you cancel less than 15 days before a program, you will receive a credit voucher, minus a $25.00 processing fee, which may be applied to another program(s) with one (1) year of the date of issue.

Paying by credit card will increase cost by $5 per Conference for processing/bank fees.