Dear Readers,
We are pleased to bring you Volume 9, Issue 18 of the Turkish Journal of Integrative Psychotherapy. The studies included in this issue embody the journal's founding principle of an integrative perspective at multiple levels: some contributors blend clinical case experience with theoretical frameworks, others focus on conceptual and theoretical syntheses, and still others shed light on social work practice through empirical research. Taken together, this issue reaffirms that psychotherapy is not merely a technical intervention, but an integrative endeavor that addresses the person as a whole—biologically, psychologically, relationally, and socially.
Clinical Case Studies
A substantial part of this issue is devoted to clinical case studies. Esra Çetinkaya offers an integrative reading of dream journals kept over the course of a long-term psychotherapy, drawing on the theoretical frameworks of Freud, Klein, Bion, and Kohut to trace the transformation of the client's self-organization through dream narratives. Ebru Çorbacı presents a fifteen-session Positive Psychotherapy process with a client showing symptoms of Bulimia Nervosa, offering an intervention model that moves beyond symptom-focused approaches to eating disorders. Hakan Sarıyıldız discusses how case formulation should be constructed for Major Depressive Disorder within the Cognitive Behavioral Therapy framework, pointing to a gap in the national literature. İnci Doğaner examines how intergenerational violence becomes visible in the course of psychotherapy through a psychodramatic case presentation, employing metaphorical imagery and scenic enactment techniques.
Theoretical and Conceptual Contributions
The theoretical axis of this issue is equally noteworthy. Burak Şensöz synthesizes the definitions of "normal" and "healthy" put forward by cognitive, psychodynamic, and existential theories, proposing a Dynamic-Cognitive-Existential model intended to contribute to clinical formulation. Fulya Yüksel Şahin reviews integrative and eclectic therapy/counseling approaches along with the helping-skills models built upon them, clarifying the distinction between the concepts of "integration" and "eclecticism," which are often used interchangeably in the literature. Seyhan Daşçı reconsiders the concept of pleasure through a phenomenological lens that moves beyond biological and neuroscientific reductions, interpreting pleasure as a derivative experience of the drive toward wholeness and continuity.
Neuroscience and Social Work-Focused Studies
Vildan Çelik evaluates the neurobiological effects of EMDR therapy in light of neuroimaging and electrophysiological findings, offering an up-to-date framework for understanding its effects on memory and emotion regulation networks. Beyza Uslu, in a study of 429 adults, examines the relationship between the perception of emotional abuse and cyber humane values–oriented behaviors displayed on social media, revealing the effects of marital status, employment, and economic status on these behaviors. Sebahattin Kuş evaluates social work practices at Alcohol and Substance Addiction Treatment Centers (AMATEM) through a literature review, sharing recommendations for strengthening the role of social workers in combating addiction. Finally, Haci Adil Ergin reviews the psychological well-being of children in foster care through the lens of attachment theory, discussing the advantages that family-based care models offer over institutional care based on the existing literature.
The ten studies brought together in this issue contribute to an integrative understanding of psychotherapy across a wide spectrum—from clinical case experience to theoretical synthesis, and from neuroscience to social work practice. We extend our sincere thanks to the authors who shared their work with us, to the reviewers whose careful evaluations elevated the quality of this issue, editor in Chief MD. Dr. Tahir Özakkaş and to the members of the editorial board Merve Ercan, Pınar Polat Ve Yasemin Gümüş contributed to the publication process. With confidence that our journal will continue to offer original contributions to the field in future issues, we wish our readers an enjoyable read.
30.08.2026
Doç. Dr. Fatümatü Zehra ERCAN
July 30, 2026
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