Catalyse is committed to research and evaluation of cognitive analytic therapy and has supported a number of initiatives and projects. Several of those involved with Catalyse as Executive Group members and trainers are research-active and have contributed to the evidence base for cognitive analytic therapy. Dr Stephen Kellett , Professor Glenys Parry and Dr Dawn Bennett have been particularly active both in the past and more recently.
You can commission experienced researchers within Catalyse to:
- support or develop small or large-scale projects,
- offer advice on project evaluation, or
- provide routine service audit.
Examples of CAT Research
CAT Competence Framework
Dawn Bennett, Stephen Kellett and Glenys Parry collaborated with Tony Roth of University College London in developing a Competence Framework in Cognitive Analytic Therapy, with the support of ACAT. You can read a paper about its development at:
- Parry, G., Bennett, D., Roth, A. D., & Kellett, S. (2021). Developing a competence framework for cognitive analytic therapy. Psychology and Psychotherapy: Theory, Research and Practice. https://doi.org/10.1111/papt.12306
A more recent account of this work was published in 2024:
- Parry, Glenys, and Dawn Bennett, Competence in CAT’, n Laura Brummer, Marisol Cavueres, and Ranil Tan (eds). Oxford Handbook of Cognitive Analytic Therapy, Oxford Library of Psychology (2024; online edn, Oxford Academic, 21 Mar. 2024), https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780198866572.013.48 , accessed 8 Oct. 2024.
C-CAT
Glenys and Dawn co-developed the C-CAT measure to help rate therapist competence in cognitive analytic therapy. This measure helps to ensure fidelity to the cognitive analytic therapy model. It continues to be used for both training and research purposes as a measure for tracking skills in the CAT approach. Since the establishment of NHSE funded training courses in CAT, this tool is also used to help provide feedback as part of trainees’ formative evaluation as they progress in their training. You can download a copy of the CCAT by clicking on this link.
CAT App
We supported research carried out by Sheffield University on developing and trialling a new CAT App. Our Sheffield Psychotherapy Practice (active until 2021) helped to field test the App. Two publications summarised progress:
- Kellett S, Easton K, Cooper M, Millings A, Simmonds-Buckley M, Parry G (2020) Evaluation of a Mobile App to Enhance Relational Awareness and Change During Cognitive Analytic Therapy: Mixed Methods Case Series. JMIR Ment Health 2020;7(12):e19888 https://mental.jmir.org/2020/12/e19888
- Easton K, Kellett S, Cooper M, Millings A, Varela J, Parry G (2021) Blending Cognitive Analytic Therapy With a Digital Support Tool: Mixed Methods Study Involving a User-Centered Design of a Prototype App. JMIR Ment Health 2021;8(2):e20213 https://mental.jmir.org/2021/2/e20213
Other support for research
Part of our mission as a not-for-profit social enterprise is to support research on cognitive analytic therapy undertaken by academic staff in Universities or the NHS. In addition to research undertaken by Catalyse, we have financially contributed to the following projects:
Conference collaborations with ACAT to support research
We collaborated with ACAT to offer two joint research conferences:
Encouraging to Engaged – A One Day Conference for CAT Practitioners in April 2018, and
The Research Journey From Start to Finish – Motivating-to-Motivated in March 2019.
These events brought together active and aspiring CAT researchers, with a view to
- sharing their work with others in the CAT community
- providing opportunities for participants to build skills and confidence in research, and
- helping to build relationships and networks to support future research.
If you would like to discuss ways in which we can support research, evaluation and audit in your organisation, contact us for further details.
