Different methods of therapy appear to be equally effective despite having theoretical foundations which are conflicting with each other. The common aspect between different therapies seems to be "having someone to talk to", so I'm inclined to believe that really is what's behind the success.
If you are fortunate, you have people like that in your immediate circle, but increasingly few people do.
it's a bit more complicated than that
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z37i8-FnAh8
and on top of this the method of therapy is to find better copings, not just to vent.
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> Different methods of therapy appear to be equally effective despite having theoretical foundations which are conflicting with each other. The common aspect between different therapies seems to be "having someone to talk to", so I'm inclined to believe that really is what's behind the success.
Just because talking is the common trait, doesn't mean that that's evidence that that is all it is. Paying someone to help you with the problem is also a common trait (and ironically, that is, no doubt, a contributory factor), but that isn't all that therapy is.
Let's say that there are three ways to solve a problem, and depending on context that we're not terribly good at determining, one of those ways will work quite often, one will work some of the time, and the other will be a disaster... but there's an equal probability that each of those ways are equally likely to fall in to each of those categories. Statistically, one could claim that how you solve the problem is not behind the success. In a sense, that would be correct, because the real determinant of success would be being lucky with the solution you chose to employ. While one could imply though that really it's nothing more than being lucky at choosing the solution, in reality without all of what's involved in that choice, the problem will remain.
Other kinds of conditions, like depression and anxiety, respond to a wider range of therapy styles. But those aren't the only conditions that people seek to treat through talk therapy. (And it's also an exaggeration to say that just having any conversation will help to treat anxiety and reopression. But it is probably true that treatment of these conditions is less technical and responds to a much wider range of styles.)
A big part of therapy is also rapport. Many people go through many therapist before finding one that works for them. In part, you can think of this as the market performing the assessment your'e referring to.
Actual maladaptive personalities are the result of low emotional intelligence.
This isn't true. Different methods work better for different problems. I've been in behavior health for 7 years now. It's having someone with a lot of education to talk to, someone with education in social and psychological problems and healthy coping mechanisms.