An Introduction to the ACT Matrix – webinar, with Richard Bennett

Recorded Webinar – 2 hours

Presenter: Dr. Richard Bennett

Are you a therapist or coach with an interest in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)?  Are you interested in learning to use a simple tool that will help you and your clients formulate presenting issues, and point you toward effective ways to move forward?  If so, then this webinar is for you!

ACT uses a range of acceptance, mindfulness, and behaviour change strategies, to increase psychological flexibility.  It is concerned with helping people to identify what is important to them and to choose actions that facilitate value-driven behaviour.  It is rapidly developing a wide-ranging evidence base across numerous areas of clinical practice, having amassed more than 300 randomised controlled trials.

From a theoretical point of view, ACT’s psychological flexibility model is often presented using the Hexaflex, highlighting six core processes that sit at the heart ACT practice.  Whilst this is a useful model for the clinician learning ACT, it is generally not something that is shared with clients, and one might argue that its practical utility is limited.  In contrast, the Matrix is a highly practical tool that brings together some key concepts of old school behaviourism with ACT’s core processes in an elegant and user-friendly way.  It has been used extensively with individuals, groups, and organisations as a way of organising assessment information, formulating stuck cycles, and highlighting options for committed action.  Not bad for a model that essentially involves drawing two intersecting lines on a page.

This 2-hour clinical skills workshop is designed for practitioners working with ACT in pretty much any setting who want to enhance and develop their practice by learning how to use the ACT Matrix. The workshop will cover the behavioural theory behind the ACT Matrix, a description of the tool itself, and a live demonstration of its use.  There will be opportunities for delegates to ask questions.  In terms of the Matrix itself, it will be pitched at beginner level, although some knowledge and experience of using ACT is recommended, since the basics of the ACT model will not be covered in any depth.  Some online resources will also be provided in order to support ongoing practice of using the ACT Matrix.

In this webinar you will learn:

• To define and discriminate behaviour under appetitive or aversive control
• The key principles of the ACT Matrix
• How to map the six core processes of the psychological flexibility model (from the Hexaflex) onto the ACT Matrix
• A step-by-step procedure for using the ACT Matrix in practice
• Helpful questions to enable you and your clients to get the most from ACT Matrix, from assessment through to subsequent interventions

About Your Presenter

Dr Richard Bennett works as a Clinical Psychologist and Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapist.  He holds a post as a lecturer on the CBT Programmes at The University of Birmingham, where he leads the Postgraduate Diploma in CBT (High Intensity).   He also works in independent practice as director of Think Psychology.  He is a BABCP accredited Psychotherapist, Supervisor, and Trainer, and an ACBS Peer-reviewed ACT Trainer.  With Joe Oliver, he is the co-author of ‘Acceptance and Commitment Therapy: 100 Key Points and Techniques’.