Training & Accreditation Committee

An Update from Dr. Mehmet Süngur, Chair

As we all know, training is a vital part of the development of any skill, and so it is with the CBTs. In recognition of this fact, the Board of Directors directed the Training and Accreditation Committee (TAC) to develop training guidelines for CBT practitioners. After a process of development and global consultation, these guidelines were adopted in 2023 and have been available on the WCCBT website since then (see https://wccbt.org/training-guidelines). More recently, to facilitate the process of dissemination, the guidelines have been translated from English into 12 languages – Afrikaans, Arabic, Bengali, Hindi, Indonesian, Japanese, Mandarin, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Turkish, and Urdu. A German version will be available very soon. Should you or your agency work in a language that is not already available, please to contact the WCCBT at training@wccbt.org to propose a translation. Presentations have been made at several conferences about the critical issue of training. In addition, an article has been written and is now in press in the journal Behavior Therapy to explain the intent behind the guidelines and their structure (see https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0005789425000620).

Even while the dissemination and evaluation of the guidelines continues, the TAC has been recently given two more assignments from the WCCBT Board of Directors. One task is to develop guidelines for work in the area of child and family therapy, as the first set of guidelines were silent on this issue. It is generally recognized that training in domains such as child development, family dynamics and cultural aspects of families are needed to provide CBTs to children and therefore there is a need for specific training guidance. Dr. Maria de Ceu Salvador of Coimbra, Portugal has agreed to chair this work and is developing a committee to begin work. Interested readers can email Ceu at ceusalvador@gmail.com.

Another direction for the TAC is to develop guidelines for low intensity or directed CBT. Many CBT practitioners in the world function within a team environment where they may provide a limited range of services, or possibly deliver a particular protocol under supervision, and so guidelines are intended for this area of practice. Dr. Roz Shafran of London, England has agreed to chair this committee and again is in the early stages of work. Her email is r.shafran@ ucl.ac.uk, for readers who are interested to communicate about training guidelines for this area of CBT practice.

The WCCBT recognizes that it does not have the statutory authority to develop practice directives or mandates, and that cultural sensitivity and adaptability are key aspects of guidelines. The development of guidelines will take some time, but it is hoped that even by the time of the next World Congress, in June of 2026 reports will be available, to see the direction of these committees and to solicit feedback from the global community. In the interim, if anyone is interested in or has comments about the work of the TAC, please feel free to contact me at mzsungur@gmail.com.