Psychotherapy of post-traumatic stress disorder in the context of process and outcome studies

Therapeutic methods and techniques are quite diverse in the treatment of cognitive, emotional and behavioral problems that emerge as a result of traumatic experiences. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a syndrome often triggered by extreme traumatic events. PTSD has been studied with various groups using different therapy techniques. The aim of the current study is to systematically review the extant literature on PTSD with a focus on efficacy of distinct forms of therapies including cognitive behavior therapy (CBT), eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), group psychotherapy integrated with CBT (CBGT), hypnosis, cognitive behavioral writing therapy (CBWT), virtual reality exposure (VR), also group music therapy, narrative revealing therapy (NET). This article presents a review of the literature on effectiveness of various some therapies widely used in treating PTSD in studies with process and outcome research designs. It includes discussion of methods and results of studies as well as suggestions for future research avenues.