Qualitative Research on Psychotherapeutic Change in Latin America: In Search of Capturing Complexity

Qualitative methods for studying change in psychotherapy have a long and varied tradition within psychology. While in the Global North, the use of qualitative methods to study psychotherapeutic change experienced renewed interest during the 1980s, in response to the limitations of the predominant positivist quantitative approach, Latin American psychotherapeutic research has taken a different path. This chapter reviews the main qualitative research approaches to psychotherapeutic change in adults, developed by Latin American researchers, considering both the influences of dominant trends within psychotherapy research and the local tradition of qualitative studies. It describes how these approaches have been produced along two complementary paths: the study of subjectivity and the study of significant change events. These approaches constitute a creative way of accounting for complexity, considering the particularities and challenges of the Latin American context. Finally, the above is illustrated with a study by the author on moments of change from the perspectives of clients, therapists, and external observers. The chapter concludes by emphasizing the value of developing qualitative research on psychotherapy change in Latin America, as it is research in the local reality, which adapts and adjusts procedures and methods in a flexible and innovative way, to try to answer questions that are relevant to clients, therapists, and psychotherapy delivery services.