Training in psychological psychotherapy and child and adolescent psychotherapy: Results of a survey

Background: in fall 1999, a regulation for the training of psychological ps ychotherapy and child and adolescent psychotherapy (APrV) was enacted by th e Ministry of Health in Germany, based on the new law for psychotherapy (Ps ychotherapeutengesetz, PsychThG). Aim: To assess the degree of redundancy i n the university training and the post-graduate training in clinical psycho logy and psychotherapy the Division of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherap y of the German Psychological Association (Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Psycho logie, DGPs) conducted a survey. Results:The survey reveals a large overlap of subjects taught as part of the university training in clinical psycholo gy and psychotherapy and the subjects required as part of the post-graduate training in psychotherapy. Usually more than 200 hours of basic theoretica l training are taught in graduate classes at the universities, covering alm ost all subjects that are requested as part of the post-graduate psychother apy training. Almost all of the responding institutes suggest a renewal of parts of the law and the APrV so that equivalent subject-matters of the dip loma training at universities should be accepted as part of the training pr ograms for psychological psychotherapy and child- and adolescent psychother apy. A change of curricula for the diploma training is not supported.