Archives: Experts

James F.T. Bugental, PhD (1915-2008) was a leading spokesman for existential-humanistic psychotherapy since the publication of his ground-breaking book The Search for Authenticity. He followed with classics such as Psychotherapy and Process, The Art of the Psychotherapist, and Psychotherapy Isn’t What You Think. Recipient of numerous awards, and influential trainer to thousands of psychotherapists, he truly made a substantial and enduring contribution to the field of psychology.

Jacob Levy Moreno (1889-1974) studied medicine, mathematics, and philosophy at the University of Vienna, becoming a Doctor of Medicine in 1917. In 1932, Moreno first introduced group psychotherapy to the American Psychiatric Association. For the next 40 years he developed and introduced his Theory of Interpersonal Relations and tools for social sciences he called ‘sociodrama’, ‘psychodrama’, ‘sociometry’, and ‘sociatry’.  In 1949 he married Zerka (nee Toeman) Moreno, working together until his death in 1974.

Zerka Moreno, TEP, (1917-2016) along with her late husband, J.L. Moreno, developed the theory and practice of psychodrama. Zerka taught psychodrama worldwide for more than 30 years since J.L. Moreno’s death and is recognized as a leader in further realizing his vision. Her research and writing can now be found in a collection, The Quintessential Zerka: Writings by Zerka T. Moreno on Psychodrama, Sociometry and Group Psychotherapy.

Psychiatrist and author Irvin Yalom, MD has been a major figure in the field of psychotherapy since he first wrote The Theory and Practice of Group Psychotherapy in 1970 (now in its 6th edition). Other significant contributions have included Existential Psychotherapy, and NY Times Bestseller Loves Executioner and Other Tales of Psychotherapy. He has written four novels on psychotherapy: When Nietzsche Wept, Lying on the Couch, The Schopenhauer Cure, and The Spinoza Problem. His works, translated into over 20 languages, have been widely read by therapists and non-therapists alike. Visit Dr. Yalom’s website.

Insoo Kim Berg, MSSW (1934-2007), was co-founder and director of the Brief Family Therapy Center in Milwaukee, WI. She developed the Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) model with her partner, Steve de Shazer. A native of Korea, Insoo balanced her heritage with Western scientific training in her clinical practice and teaching.

Berg served on the editorial boards of the Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, Family Psychology and Counseling Series, Families in Society, and Family Process. She was a founder of the Solution-Focused Brief Therapy Association, clinical member and approved supervisor for the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, and was also active in the Wisconsin Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, the National Association of Social Workers, and the European Brief Therapy Association. She was a frequent keynote speaker at international conferences and regularly conducted seminars and workshops on SFBT throughout the U.S., Canada, South America, Asia, and Europe.

Harry J. Aponte, LCSW, LMFT is a professor in Drexel University’s Couple & Family Therapy Department. He also has a private practice in Philadelphia. He has written several important articles and chapters in addition to his book, Bread and Spirit: Therapy with the New Poor.  He has lectured and conducted workshops throughout the United States, as well as in Canada, Latin America, Europe and Asia.

Among other honors, he received the award for Distinguished Contribution to Family Therapy and Practice from the American Family Therapy Academy in 1992, and the award for Outstanding Contribution to the Field of Marriage and Family Therapy from the Association for Marriage and Family Therapy in 2001.  He also received the I. Arthur Marshall Distinguished Alumnus Award from the Menninger Clinic in 1997.

Ernest L. Rossi, PhD is an internationally renowned therapist, teacher and pioneer in the psychobiology of mind-body healing. He is the Science Editor of Psychological Perspectives and the author, co-author and editor of more than 20 professional books in the areas of psychotherapy, dreams, psychobiology and therapeutic hypnosis, including Dreams, Consciousness, Spirit, Mind-Body Therapy: Methods of Ideodynamic Healing in Hypnosis, and the bestselling The Twenty-Minute Break: Using the New Science of Ultradian Rhythms.

Erving Polster, PhD (1922-2024) was the Director of The Gestalt Institute of San Diego, and the author of several important books, including Gestalt Therapy Integrated, Every Person’s Life is Worth a Novel, and From the Radical Center: The Heart of Gestalt Therapy, as well as dozens of articles and chapters.

For more than 20 years, Dr. Ellyn Bader has helped couples transform their relationships. She is widely recognized as an expert in couples therapy training. Ellyn and her husband, Dr. Peter Pearson, are creators of The Developmental Model of Couples Therapy, and directors of The Couples Institute in Menlo Park, California.

Ellyn and Peter are the authors of In Quest of the Mythical Mate: A Developmental Approach to Diagnosis and Treatment in Couples Therapy. The California Association of Marital & Family Therapists awarded the book the Clark Vincent Award for its outstanding contribution to the field of marital therapy. Their latest book, Tell Me No Lies, presents a fascinating account of the lies partners tell each other and ultimately, how to face the truth and build a loving marriage.

Ellyn has created innovative, practical training programs for therapists using conference calls and the internet. For more information on Ellyn’s training, please visit www.couplesinstitutetraining.com/developmentalmodel.

Donald Meichenbaum, PhD is Distinguished Professor Emeritus from the University of Waterloo in Ontario Canada from which he took early retirement 28 years ago. Since that time, he has been Research Director of the Melissa Institute for Violence Prevention in Miami. He is one of the founders of Cognitive Behavior Therapy and in a survey of clinicians, he was voted “One of the ten most influential psychotherapists of the 20th century.” Dr. Meichenbaum has received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Clinical Division of the American Psychological Association and was Honorary President of the Canadian Psychological Association. He has presented in all 50 U.S states and internationally and he has published extensively.

David Scharff, MD is co-founder and co-director of the International Psychotherapy Institute and Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Georgetown University. He is one of the most internationally recognized figures in psychoanalysis and Object Relations therapy. He has written and edited 19 books with his wife, Jill Scharff, on individual, family and couples Object Relations therapy, including Object Relations Theory and Practice and Object Relations Family Therapy.

Jill Savege Scharff, MD is co-director of the International Psychotherapy Institute and Chair of the International Institute for Psychoanalytic Training. She is Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Georgetown University Medical School and Teaching Analyst at the Washington Psychoanalytic Institute. Her private practice in Chevy Chase, Maryland is concentrated on psychoanalysis with children and adults, and on couple and family therapy.