Investigating Clinical Psychology takes a deep dive into the field of clinical psychology through the lens of pseudoscience and fringe science. An expert panel of authors honor the role of science in the field while also exploring and guarding against the harms that pseudoscience can cause.

Jonathan N. Stea, PhD, RPsych, is a practicing clinical psychologist and adjunct assistant professor at the University of Calgary (UofC) in Canada. He's a two-time winner of the UofC's Award for Excellence in Clinical Supervision and the 2022 recipient of the Psychologists' Association of Alberta's media and science communication award. His forthcoming book about mental health misinformation and pseudoscience will be published in 2025 by Penguin Random House Canada, Oxford University Press, and Audible.

Stephen Hupp, PhD, is a clinical psychologist and professor of psychology at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) in the United States. In 2015, he won the Great Teacher Award from the SIUE Alumni Association. He has published several books, including Pseudoscience in Therapy and Science-Based Therapy, and he is the Editor of Skeptical Inquirer: The Magazine for Science and Reason.

Foreword

Timothy Caulfield

Preface

Stephen Hupp

PART I: Introduction

1. The Role of Science in Clinical Psychology

Jonathan N. Stea

2. Intellectual Humility and Historical Roots in Pseudoscience

Daniel Machado, Owen Hicks, and David J. A. Dozois

PART II: Assessment

3. Dubious Diagnoses

Blake A. E. Boehme, Andres De Los Reyes, & Gordon J. G. Asmundson

4. Rorschach Inkblots

James M. Wood, M. Teresa Nezworski, and Howard N. Garb

5. Personality Assessment

Gerald P. Koocher and Yilong Peng

PART III: Intervention

6. Hypnosis and Hypnotherapy

Miranda A. L. van Tilburg

7. Harmful Mental Health Interventions

Yevgeny Botanov, Alexander J. Williams, John Sakaluk, and Robyn Kilshaw

8. Energy Medicine

Jon Guy, Melanie Trecek-King, Ruth Ann Harpur, and Jonathan N. Stea

9. Purple Hat Therapies

Eve A. Rosenfeld and Carmen P. McLean

10. Animal-Assisted Therapies

Kitti Bessenyei, Igor Yakovenko, Lindsey Snaychuk, and Andrew (Hyounsoo) Kim

PART IV: Special Topics

11. Child and Adolescent Psychology

Jaden Sangoi, Keaira Cox, and Stephen Hupp

12. Alternative Medicine

Edzard Ernst

13. Neuropsychology

Isabella Hartley and Indre V. Viskontas

14. Forensic Psychology

Montana L. Ploe, David K. Marcus, and John F. Edens

PART V: Conclusion

15. Science-Based Clinical Psychology

Stephen Hupp and Vyla Hupp