PTS | New Publication: Study on Interpersonal Skills in Psychotherapy Training Launches This Autumn

A recent publication by the Institute for Training Research marks the start of a study that explores a central question in psychotherapy research:

Are interpersonal skills that are significant for therapeutic success specifically developed during psychotherapy training – or can comparable levels of competence also be found in other training contexts?

To this end, students of psychotherapy are being compared with students of nursing, teacher training and STEM subjects such as physics – at the start of their studies, at the end of their Bachelor’s degree and at the end of their Master’s degree.

The study thus systematically investigates, for the first time, whether interpersonal skills develop differently during psychotherapy training compared to other fields of study. The findings are intended to help understand the role played by training, prior experience and general developmental processes in the acquisition of psychotherapeutic skills.

The study begins in autumn and comes at a particularly relevant time:
With the new Psychotherapy Act, the training structure in Austria is currently undergoing fundamental reform. Right now, the question arises as to what extent a degree in psychotherapy is necessary for the development of interpersonal skills. This study will be the first to provide well-founded empirical answers to this question.

Contact for enquiries:
Univ.-Prof. Priv.-Doz. Dr. Andrea Jesser
andrea.jesser@sfu.ac.at

16 July 2026