MORE THEORY-DRIVEN AND LESS DIAGNOSIS-BASED BEHAVIOR-THERAPY

Individualized treatment based on a functional analysis of problem beh avior used to be considered a hallmark of behavior therapy. Yet the re lative success of recently developed treatment manuals for DSM-defined disorders has cast doubts as to whether treatment individualization i s really necessary. This article evaluates some of the relative merits of assessments and manualized treatments based on DSM categories and discusses data that indicate when a protocol treatment approach is suf ficient and when it is not. Finally, a theory-driven approach to condu cting behavior therapy is proposed as a way to complement individualiz ed and manualized treatments. This approach is illustrated by presenti ng a model-based assessment and treatment approach to overcome excessi ve heart-focused anxiety (cardiophobia). Copyright (C) 1996 Elsevier S cience Ltd