A measure of psychotherapeutic competence derived from cognitive analytic therapy

The authors describe CCAT, a measure of psychotherapist competence derived from cognitive analytic therapy (CAT). This measure scores competence across 10 domains of therapeutic practice. One of these domains is CAT specific, whereas the other 9 reflect factors characteristic of the CAT model but common to humanistic, relational, and cognitive therapies, giving the measure potential broader applicability. The CCAT demonstrates acceptable levels of interrater reliability and high internal consistency. Validity tests show that scores are significantly associated, as predicted, with quality of therapeutic alliance. The measure is designed for use with whole-session audio-recordings and can be used in research, service evaluation, clinical audit, and training.