A high-quality mentalization-based group therapy session

Abstract

A previous study of a MBT group displayed that the therapists failed to establish the group as a training ground for mentalizing. In this study we present a detailed and long transcript of a sequence in a successful MBT group. The therapists’ interventions were rated according to the mentalization-based group therapy adherence and quality scale, performed by the Norwegian MBT Quality Laboratory. The therapists displayed a high adherence to the MBT-G manual and the patients became collectively engaged in exploring and reflecting upon crucial borderline dynamics. The interventions that seemed most important for unfolding of the sequence are carefully spelled out. They have a metacognitive flavour, but are elsewise simple and straight forward. There seems to be nothing essentially new in this MBT-G approach, if one asks for specific ingredients. However, the therapeutic stance is consequently geared towards exploration of mental states, guided by a certain theory. One might say that it represents a more modern mixture of ingredients that are well known in different research and group therapy camps.