WHAT IS CPT?
CPT is a cognitive-behavioral treatment for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). CPT was developed in the late 1980s and has been shown to be effective in reducing PTSD symptoms related to a variety of traumatic events including child abuse, combat, rape and natural disasters.
CPT is endorsed by the U.S. Departments of Veterans Affairs, as well as the International Society of Traumatic Stress Studies and is a recommended evidence-based treatment for PTSD in Australian and International guidelines.
The Department of Veterans Affairs in the U.S. outline the process of treatment on this page.
Evidence for Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT)
CPT has been shown to be effective in treating PTSD and related symptoms (e.g., depression) in numerous studies (click here for a summary of CPT research). At this time, this has included more than 35 randomised trials and numerous open trials. This literature demonstrates the large range of clients who can be helped by CPT, including victim-survivors of interpersonal trauma (from both childhood and adulthood experiences), veterans, active duty military personnel, as well as those who have experienced single-incident type traumas.
It is worth noting that CPT has been used successfully with individuals from non-English speaking backgrounds, whether this is with refugees in a Western treatment setting, or with clients in their country of origin. Treatment guidelines both in Australia and internationally indicate that trauma-focused cognitive-behavioural methods such as CPT should be the front-line treatment of choice.