Operational principles of Acceptance and Commitment therapy and Schema therapy. Is integration possible?
Lorenzo Bertinelli
Among the therapies belonging to the so-called «third wave» cognitive-behavioural approach,
Acceptance and Commitment therapy and Schema therapy are undoubtedly the two leaders, both from
a clinical and methodological point of view.
The aim of this paper is to present the reader with the main operating principles of both theoretical
approaches, highlighting the major points of contact and the most obvious discrepancies between
them. Looking at the two therapies from an essentially clinical point of view, you can see the use of
the same principles and operational instruments; what differentiates the two therapies appears to
be the way in which these instruments are used, and the specific objectives that are to be achieved.
However, the fundamental objective, namely that of the mental health of the individual, unites the
two approaches. For this reason, future courses of psychotherapy must try to integrate, rather than
create progressive and increasingly deep divisions, theoretical and clinical developments which,
although arising from different routes, have been shown to achieve scientifically important clinical results.
Keywords
Acceptance and Commitment therapy, Schema therapy, Mindfulness, Values,
Existential rights.
