Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) differs from other approaches by teaching mindfulness as a set of skills. In contrast to mindfulness-based therapies such as Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT), DBT makes a distinction between observe, describe, and participate (the “What Skills”) and teaches each as a separate skill. DBT makes explicit...
Dialectical Behaviour Therapy can be conceptualized as the transaction between behaviour therapy and Zen contemplative practice, held together with a dialectical philosophy. When first developed, mindfulness practices had not yet been incorporated into psychotherapy. Marsha Linehan chose to augment behaviour therapy with Zen practice. This chapter begins with a brief history of Zen and...