To the Colleagues of FIAP

Subj.: Some explanations of the Strasbourg Declaration on Psychotherapy of 1990

Dear Colleagues,

when we, some psychotherapists from Germany, Switzerland and Austria met in October 1990 in Strasbourg, we tried to formulate a guideline for the development of psychotherapy in Europe. In the meanwhile, this declaration became the base of more than 500 psychotherapeutic organisations in Europe and abroad, which are organized in the European Association for Psychotherapy (EAP) and the World Council for Psychotherapy (WCP), among them many National Umbrella Organisations (NUOs) in Europe and overseas (Argentina, New Zealand, Japan, China (Beijing)).

Dr. Riccardo Zerbetto asked the EAP at the last Board Meeting, 14th February 1998, to clarify some points of the Strasbourg Declaration, and as the one who proposed it I will comment some aspects:

Question: What does „independent scientific discipline" mean?
Answer: It means, that psychotherapy is an integrative human science, which integrates medical, psychological, pedagogical, theological, system-theoretical elements, but cannot be summarized under one of the mentioned disciplines. Psychotherapy can be understood as a human science on subjectivity (Pritz, Ed., 1996). But the process of defining psychotherapy as a science is just at the beginning. E.g. there was a brilliant discussion in the beginning of the Annual General Meeting in Rome 1997, whether the so-called theory on „constructive realism" could be an „umbrella" theory for the diverse schools of psychotherapy.

Question: What does „free profession" mean? How can this term be clearly defined under the European legislation?
Answer: „Free profession" means, that the profession of psychotherapy has to be in that way defined as other free professions are, like lawyers, accountants, medical doctors. It means, that the psychotherapist has to bare the full responsability in his professional activities, not being „guided" by other professions. The free professions are fully recognized in the European Union and are organized European-wide in „SEPLIS". There is also a world wide organisation of free professions, in which the WCP is one of the members (Delegate: Dr. Tordjmann, member of EAP and WCP).

Question: What does „advanced" mean, what is the minimum education before the psychotherapy-training?
Answer: It is a post-graduate level according to the European Certificate for Psychotherapy (ECP).

Question: Will the „multiplicity" of the methods be evaluated or indiscriminately accepted?
Answer: The methods MUST be evaluated and cannot be accepted indiscriminately. We need to have the psychotherapy modalities be proven and in a process of quality control.

Question: Why are „human and social sciences" considered „particular preliminary qualifications"? Is medicine and psychology among them?
Answer: This point is describing the actual situation in Europe. Psychotherapists are mainly coming from the following professions: medicine, psychology, social work, teachers and other social professions. The mentioned point in the Strasbourg Declaration describes this situation, but includes the possibilities of exceptions - as there have been gifted psychotherapists, like Erik Erikson (artist), Pfister (Priest), Watzlawik (University teacher). It is the fact, that at this stage of development of psychotherapy in Europe about 70 percent of all psychotherapists are medical doctors and psychologists.

 

Hon.Prof. Dr. Alfred Pritz

General Secretary of EAP Vienna, 17th March 1998.

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