The Lived Experiences of Learning Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: a Qualitative Study of Psychiatry Residents

The purpose of this qualitative study was to investigate the lived experiences, beliefs, attitudes, and needs of psychiatry residents learning cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).

Eight general psychiatry residents beginning their outpatient psychotherapy training in July 2020, answered open-ended questions about their experiences learning CBT in October 2020. The residents learned CBT through didactics, role-play, observation, video review, and individual and group supervision. Participants were asked to describe their experiences broadly, reflect on the simple and challenging aspects of learning, identify the most and least helpful learning modalities, and share thoughts or personal reflections activated through their journey. Written data were analyzed using Colaizzi's phenomenological methodology, including the extraction of significance statements and collapsing of meaning statements into key thematic clusters. Verification strategies were used to ensure the trustworthiness and credibility of data analysis.

Participants found various learning modalities effective, most notably individual and group supervision. While rapport building and mood checks were least challenging, many found adhering to structure or implementation of advanced techniques to be the more arduous parts of learning. Patient progress tended to stimulate resident engagement, whereas incomplete action plans or lack of observable treatment gains led to some automatic negative thoughts. Many participants applied CBT techniques to themselves to address their own automatic thoughts, biases, or behavioral patterns.

The results of this study offer valuable insight about learners' experiences of becoming a therapist that could help normalize residents' experiences and help educators guide residents through the learning process.