Supercharging therapy with values

This talk focuses on the values and commitment component of ACT. It reviews the evidence suggesting that behavioral activation and values clarification is beneficial. It then presents a new measure and model, the ImPActS model. The focus of this model is on "life principles" , which encompasses values and abstract goals (e.g., being loyal). The ImPActS model posits four behavioral dimensions targeted by ACT: Importance, Pressure (or pliance), Activity (number of principles in play), and success.

The Survey of Life Principles was designed to measure these four dimensions. It has shown promise in a University sample (n = 300). Specifically,each of the four dimensions of the SLP predicts distinct aspects of social and emotional well-being. There were a number of other interesting findings including: 1) Experiential control principles where the ones that people most often failed at. 2) When people experienced substantial pressure to hold a principle (e.g being honest), they tended to be less successful at that principle, especially if that principle was not one they rated as important. This is evidence for the downsides of compliance and counter compliance. 3) People generally viewed power principles (e.g., having influence) as being incompatible with social principles (being loyal, being honest).

I would propose that the SLP, or something like it, is a better outcome measure for ACT than are symptom measures (e.g., beck depression inventory). I would expect that ACT would be better than other therapies at beneficially influencing all four dimensions of the SLP. That is, ACT is predicted to increase how much people find to be important, to decrease how much people are driven by external pressure, to increase behavioral activity (e.g., people do more with their life), and to increase success at living principles.