In this piece forĀ Transcend Media Service, Dr. Anthony J. Marsella critiques the standardization of mental health treatment, arguing that it overlooks cultural and individual differences among clients and providers.
“The primary problem, in my opinion, faced by evidence-based efforts is the failure to recognize the serious limitations in homogenized and standardize approaches and methods, and risks for care and healing.
Scientific and professional preferences for a canon fail to acknowledge the profound variations across each client, each therapist, each disorder(s), and each therapy and healing approach and method. There is an implicit insistence on uniformity at the expense of diversity and variation. This perpetuates myths of therapist, patient, therapy, and disorder in favor scientific and professional interests and concerns.”