Theories for psychotherapeutic genetic counseling

Biesecker, B., Austin, J., & Caleshu, C. (2017). Theories for psychotherapeutic genetic counseling: Fuzzy trace theory and cognitive behavior theory. Journal of Genetic Counseling, 26(2), 322-330. DOI: 10.1007/s10897-016-0023-1

Psychotherapeutic genetic counseling is an increasingly relevant practice description. In this paper we aim to demonstrate how psychotherapeutic genetic counseling can be achieved by using psychological theories to guide one's approach to working with clients. We describe two illustrative examples, fuzzy trace theory and cognitive behavior theory, and apply them to two challenging cases. The theories were partially derived from evidence of beneficial client outcomes using a psychotherapeutic approach to patient care in other settings. We aim to demonstrate how these two specific theories can inform psychotherapeutic genetic counseling practice, and use them as examples of how to take a psychological theory and effectively apply it to genetic counseling.