The future will see the technology of social skills training
adapted for multiplying the therapeutic outcomes from
cognitive behavior therapy and interpersonal therapy.
Depression and social anxiety are common concomitants
of schizophrenia that have been treated almost exclusively
with medications; however, by infusing social skills
training procedures into evidence-based, psychological
treatments for these comorbid disorders, mood and anxiety
disorders will be more effectively treated. Because depression
and social anxiety are major causes of poor
quality of life, this important, subjective index of recovery
should have an upswing.
While cognitive behavior therapy also has become an
evidence-based treatment for residual psychotic symptoms,
few clinicians or investigators have recognized the
importance of social skills in this modality’s reliance on
behavioral assignments and ‘‘experiments.76’’ Social skills
training is implicitly involved in instigating favorable
outcomes in both cognitive behavior therapy and interpersonal
therapy, but more explicit integration and adaptation
of skills training methods in these therapies holds
promise for improving their impact in schizophrenia