Interpersonal Psychotherapy for Depressed Adolescents

“IPT is a therapeutic approach that is highly amenable to [a] social worker's ecosystemic and family orientation. For social work practitioners and educators seeking an EST for their practice, or for training Master's level Social Work students, IPT is a good entree to a highly rigorous Evidence Based Practice....[A] strong resource for clinicians and educators....Interpersonal Psychotherapy for Depressed Adolescents...offers a good starting point for social workers in increasing their use of ESTs.”

—Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal


“In addition to providing a revised manual that incorporates evidence-based practices and many very helpful clinical examples, the authors provide a concise but excellent general overview of other current treatment practices for depressed adolescents....I found this book to be well-organized and easy (actually fun) to read. I found the clinical examples and tips to be useful in general terms for working with adults as well as adolescents, especially in community settings....The brief, focal nature of the therapy is very adaptable for work with adolescents in community settings.”

—Community Mental Health Journal


“This much needed second edition by experts in the field of interpersonal psychotherapy delivers hope and provides an evidence-based approach for the treatment of adolescent depression....presents an excellent treatment alternative that a clinician can use and expect quick results since it is time limited. It represents a welcome change at a time that is ridden with antidepressant medication controversy. The last section of the book has extremely useful tips for challenging cases. This book is a must have for all clinicians treating adolescents....a job well done. Weighted Numerical Score: 90 - 4 Stars!”

—Doody's Review Service


“The book is clear, insightful, and evidence-based....Any individual working with adolescents would benefit from reading this book, as it is directly applicable to clinical practice....IPT is an evidence-based therapy and highly applicable to the adolescent population. I would encourage anyone working with adolescents to read this book and keep it readily available for reference in their clinical practice.”

—Archives of Women's Mental Health


“Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT) is one of the most promising interventions for the treatment of depression, and one of the few that has empirical data to support its efficacy with adolescents. In this revised second edition, Mufson and colleagues provide an informative and succinct description of the steps involved in using IPT to treat depressed adolescents. Rich in theory and clinical detail, this is a valuable resource for anyone working with younger patients.”

—Steven D. Hollon, PhD, Department of Psychology, Vanderbilt University


“Since the publication of the first edition of this book, IPT for Adolescents (IPT-A) has matured. Well-conducted research studies have shown this to be a powerful treatment for depressed teenagers who are experiencing psychosocial complications. In this second edition, the authors share an extra decade of experience, present and discuss the research findings, and offer valuable advice on how the treatment can be applied to very young patients. This book is a 'must' for psychotherapists of any orientation who work with depressed teenagers.”

—David Shaffer, MD, Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons


“In this expanded second edition, the authors build a compelling case for the value of interpersonal psychotherapy for depressed adolescents (IPT-A). Their comprehensive, theory-driven, evidence-based intervention manual is developmentally informed, innovative, and clinically relevant. The case material illuminates the various strategies and techniques associated with IPT-A and effective ways to implement the intervention approach. I highly recommend this book for trainees and experienced mental health professionals invested in providing quality, interpersonally oriented interventions for depressed youth.”

—Nadine J. Kaslow, PhD, ABPP, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine


“The second edition of Interpersonal Psychotherapy for Depressed Adolescents is an impressive guide for perplexed clinicians working with adolescents, who are bombarded with a plethora of untested treatment recommendations from every discipline. This book presents one of the few evidence-based, controlled studies of interventions for depressed teenagers. IPT-A is based on the premise that, regardless of the underlying cause, depression is a medical illness whose course is strongly intertwined with the patient's dysfunctional interpersonal relationships and affectional bonds, as described earlier by Sullivan and Bowlby. The authors present many vignettes from their clinical work, as well as an overview of recent community-based studies demonstrating the effectiveness of IPT-A in school-based clinics. Techniques of role-play and communication analysis in a time-limited therapy are offered, replete with case illustrations. This book will be invaluable for all mental health practitioners who work with adolescents in individual and community settings.”

—Clarice J. Kestenbaum, MD, Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons