The founders of ISPS and others who where important for ISPS ideas

In 1950 two young Swiss Psychiatrists, Christian Müller and Gaetano Benedetti, dissatisfied with the treatment of schizophrenia at the time, decided to gather together colleagues interested in the psychoanalytic treatment of schizophrenia. In 1970 ISPS came to Scandinavia, where Yrjo Alanen developed need adapted treatment. In Finland this model developed into the open dialogue model. Johan Cullberg developed the parachute project. He was the first chairperson of ISPS. Further reading see Isps page On this page you find links to the writings of these founders. We added two other persons who's work was also very inspiring for ISPS. Of course there are more you find them under the items of specific treatments.

Gaetano Benedetti

Interview of Benedetti by Brian Koehler see abstract

Psychotherapy of Schizophrenia 1987 book by Gaetano Benedetti see amazon

Brian Koehler about Benedetti see film

Christiaan Műller

Der Schizophrene und seine Familie

Newspaper article: Ein Pionier der Schweizer Psychiatrie, Auch mit 90 verlangt der emeritierte Berner Psychiatrie professor Christian Müller den «Abschied vom Irrenhaus».von Walter Däpp

Yrjö O. Alanen

Schizophrenia: Its Origins and Need-Adapted Treatment by Yrjo O.Alanen see book on google

Yrjö O. Alanen, Manuel González de Chávez, Ann-Louise S. Silver, Brian Psychotherapeutic Approaches to Schizophrenic Psychoses, Past, Present and Future see book front-page

Towards a more humanistic psychiatry: Development of need‐adapted treatment of schizophrenia group psychoses, see article in psychosis

Johan Cullberg

Evolving Psychosis, Different Stages, Different Treatments, ISPS book series see front page of book

Psychoses, An Integrative Perspective see front page book

Treatment costs and clinical outcome for first episode schizophrenia patients: a 3-year follow-up of the Swedish Parachute Project and Two Comparison Groups see first page article

Frieda Fromm Reichmann

Not a founder of ISPS, but very important in the history of psychodynamic therapy on psychosis in the USA were the therapists of Chestnut lodge, with Frieda Fromm Reichmann as the most well-known. She was the therapist in “I never promised you a rose garden”. See front page book

The academic lecture, psychotherapy of schizophrenia, Frieda Fromm-Reichmann see abstract

To get really a picture of the therapy in chestnut lodge read the biography of Gail Hornstein on Frieda Fromm-Reichman To Redeem One Person Is to Redeem the World: The Life of Frieda Fromm-Reichmann by Gail A. Hornstein see amazon

There were stories of wonderful recoveries, but outcome studies of Mc Glashan revealed that the practice of Chestnut lodge was no miracle therapy for ‘schizophrenia’, although patients in general were content and patients with a more borderline personality structure seemed to profit more. See abstract 1, 2, 3, 4. Actually it is a pity that no RTC was done. People admitted to Chestnut Lodge usually had a long story in psychiatry, Chestnut Lodge was a last resort, nevertheless there were more recoveries than in a comparable chronic group of the Vermont Hospital.

Comment of A.Silver see Pdf

What has become of the psychotherapy of schizophrenia?*Mc Glashan see first page Pdf

Critique on the study see abstract

A follow-up report on admissions to Chestnut Lodge 1948–1958, Clarence G. Schulz, he reported that patients were generally content see first page Pdf

Loren Mosher

Loren Mosher is another person, who was not a founder of ISPS, but influenced ISPS thinking on how to meet psychotic persons. See lecture of his wife. He founded the Soteriahouse, where people with a psychosis were accompanied by friendly people usually layman. It had a better outcome than a psychiatric dayclinic See article. For a close view on what happened in Soteriahouse read the book: Soteria: Through Madness to Deliverance, (2004) by Loren R. Mosher (Author), Voyce Hendrix (Author), Deborah C. Fort

ISPS Journal

The ISPS Journal Psychosis accepts personal and institutional subscriptions. All Individual Members of ISPS and members of regional ISPS groups receive quarterly issues of the journal as a membership benefit.