ACT Training and Core Competencies for Trauma

The majority of therapists around the world choosing to learn ACT will not have the luxury of training for multiple years with an expert ACT mentor, although a number of peer-reviewed ACT trainers who are willing to provide virtual ACT consultation can be found on contextualscience.org.

For this reason, it is essential that interested clinicians have a basic road map for learning to implement ACT in more independent settings. Fortunately, there are now a variety of tools and methods of training for the therapists interested in learning to apply ACT principles in practice. Certainly, one of the first ways to begin to build an understanding of ACT is to read books and treatment manuals that have been developed by different authors. And a multitude of excellent references can be found with a simple Google search. Repeated presentations of the same information in different ways are more likely to lead to a nuanced understanding of the material.

Batten, S. V. (2011). Essentials of acceptance and commitment therapy. SAGE Publications Ltd.

This applies to both written and video-based training aids. Multiple video recordings are now available in which an ACT trainee can see a variety of therapists approaching similar therapeutic issues in slightly different ways. This direct modeling is especially important so that new ACT practitioners can learn to discriminate form from function in the application of ACT.

Batten, S. V. (2011). Essentials of acceptance and commitment therapy. SAGE Publications Ltd.