Brief therapy utilizes a variety of approaches to psychotherapy. It differs from other therapeutic approaches in that it focuses on a specific problem, and involves a direct intervention by the therapist who works more pro-actively with the client. It emphasizes precise observation, the utilization of a client's natural resources, and the temporary suspension of disbelief, to enable the consideration of new perspectives and multiple viewpoints.
The primary objective is to aid the client to view present circumstances in a wider context with increased functionality. Brief therapy is seen as solution based rather than problem solving, and therapists are more concerned with current factors preventing change rather than how the issues arose. There is not one specific mode of approach but many paths which, singly or combined, might ultimately be beneficial. Brief therapy is short term, usually in a pre-arranged number of sessions.
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