Marsha Linehan
American psychologist who developed dialectical behaviour therapy
American clinical psychologist at the University of Washington who developed dialectical behaviour therapy, first for suicidal behaviour and later for borderline personality disorder and other disorders involving severe emotion dysregulation.
Why this person matters
Linehan's dialectical behaviour therapy combined behavioural change strategies with acceptance strategies and mindfulness. It was designed first for people with suicidal behaviour. Its development depended on patients, research teams and trial funding as well as on Linehan.
Main contributions
Dialectical behaviour therapy
Linehan brought acceptance into behaviour therapy, which is why the treatment is called dialectical. Because her grant required a formal diagnosis, she built the first study around borderline personality disorder. Her team reviewed therapy sessions and kept or dropped procedures on the basis of evidence.
Treatment research with suicidal patients
A controlled trial published in 1991 compared the treatment with standard therapy for people with borderline personality disorder and suicidal behaviour. According to a reference article, those given the treatment were less likely to hurt themselves and more likely to stay in therapy.
Clinics and training materials
She directed the University of Washington Behavioral Research and Therapy Clinics until her retirement in 2019. She published manuals, including a 1993 skills training manual for borderline personality disorder and a revised DBT Skills Training Manual in 2015.
Context and limits
The Association for Psychological Science profile says Linehan faced a great deal of criticism from non-behavioural therapists. Early critics argued she was just a teacher and that teaching skills is not therapy. She and other researchers later expanded the evidence base. The sources read give few trial details, so students should check claims about outcomes against the original papers.
In your introductory course
Treatment and therapy.Linehan appears in chapters on treatment of personality disorders and suicidal behaviour. Dialectical behaviour therapy is taught as an extension of cognitive-behavioural therapy.
Related course reading: Psychology 2e, section 16.1. This is course context rather than a biographical source.
Years of active work
- 1977
She was recruited to the University of Washington.
- 1991
The first controlled trial of the treatment was published.
- 1993
Cognitive-Behavioral Treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder and a skills training manual were published.
- 2015
A revised DBT Skills Training Manual was published.
Sources
- Association for Psychological Science, Champions of Psychology: Marsha M. LinehanSociety or association. Institutional biography inspected.
- University of Washington Behavioral Research and Therapy Clinics, Marsha LinehanUniversity. Institutional biography inspected.
- Wikipedia, Marsha M. LinehanReference work. Reference article inspected.