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Spiritual and Religious Competencies in Clinical Practice

Spirituality lies at the heart of many clients' core values, and helps shape their perception of themselves and the world around them. In this book, two clinical psychologists provide a much-needed, research-based road map to help professionals appropriately address their clients’ spiritual or religious beliefs in treatment sessions.

More and more, it has become essential for mental health professionals to understand and competently navigate clients' religious and spiritual beliefs in treatment. In Spiritual and Religious Competencies in Clinical Practice, you’ll find sixteen research-based guidelines and best practices to help you provide effective therapy while being conscious of your clients' unique spiritual or cultural background.

With this professional resource as your guide, you will be prepared to:

  • Take a spiritual and religious history when treating a client
  • Attend to spiritual or religious topics in a clinical setting
  • Hold clear ethical boundaries regarding your own religious or spiritual beliefs
  • Know when and how to make referrals if topics emerge which are beyond the scope of your competence

This book is a must-read for any mental health professional looking to develop spiritual, religious, and cultural competencies. Foreword by Daniel Siegel.

If you are unaware of the spiritual dimensions of healing, your competence will be seriously compromised. This is a must-read manual for therapists, healers, doctors, nurses, or anyone in the healing professions.
Deepak Chopra, MD

Aimed at clinicians, this is also a quietly profound and transformational book. It draws readers into a heartfelt engagement with their own deepest questions and longings while offering many practical guidelines and suggestions for skillful, effective work with diverse spiritual, religious, and existential issues. Unique, and destined to be a classic in the field.
Rick Hanson, PhD, author of Buddha’s Brain

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Mindful Motherhood

From hormones to stretch marks, labor pains to diaper changes, motherhood is an adventure like none other. The rapid changes in your body, your lifestyle, and your very identity call for a certain mental agility. Mindfulness can help you meet the challenge and approach every experience with your new baby with open eyes and an open heart.

Easy ten-minute meditation exercises and yoga poses throughout this book will help you cultivate greater flexibility and mindful awareness during pregnancy, childbirth, and your baby's first year. Whenever you have a moment to spare, open Mindful Motherhood and discover a skill that will help you find balance and fulfillment during those times when you feel most overwhelmed.

Mindful Motherhood contains what so many other parenting books omit:: the consoling information that each mother has the ability to know, deep within, how to care for her child. Mindful Motherhood is a gem.
-Christiane Northrup, MD, author of Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom

Wise, soothing, and helpful-this is really good stuff for new mothers.
-Jack Kornfield, author of The Wise Heart

Living Deeply

Opportunities to actively engage in your own transformation and that of our world are woven into the fabric of your everyday life. Learning more about the terrain of consciousness transformation can not only give you a map, but can help you become the cartographer of your own transformative journey.

Research over the last decade at the Institute of Noetic Sciences (IONS) has systematically surveyed hundreds of people's stories of their own transformations, as well as conducting over 50 in-depth interviews with teachers and masters of the world's spiritual, religious, and transformative traditions. Living Deeply transcends any one approach by focusing on common elements of transformation across a variety of traditions, while affirming and supporting the diversity of approaches across religious, spiritual, scientific, academic, and cultural backgrounds. See the model resulting from this work here.

No matter who you are, where you come from, or what your current path is - whether you seek to transform your life completely or simply make adjustments that will add a layer of richness and depth to your life - exploring the many ways that transformation is stimulated and sustained can hold great power. Weaving together cutting-edge science with wisdom from teachers of the world's transformative traditions this book explores how people experience deep shifts in their consciousness, and how those shifts can lead to healing and wholeness. Each chapter in the book ends with exercises drawn from wisdom traditions or scientific investigations meant to enhance your direct experience of the material. Foreword by Robert Thurman.

Living Deeply is the accumulated wisdom of many of our greatest living teachers, all adepts in the goal of personal transformation. This is one of the finest collections of gentle, penetrating insights available. Highly recommended.
Larry Dossey, MD

Peer Reviewed Journal Articles

Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles (ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3081-5174)

 

Parikh, N.I., Laraia, B., Nah G., Singhal, M., Vittinghoff, E., Vieten, C., Stotland, N., Coleman-Phox, K., Adler, N., Albert, M.A., Epel, E. (In press, Journal of Women’s Health). Cardiovascular disease-related pregnancy complications are associated with increased maternal levels and trajectories of cardiovascular disease biomarkers during and after pregnancy. 

Oxhandler, H. K., Pargament, K., Pearce, M., & Vieten, C., Moffatt, K. M. (Under review, Journal of Mental Health). The relevance of religion/spirituality to mental health: Scale development and a national survey of current clients’ views.

Pearce, M. J., Pargament, K. I., Oxhandler, H. K., Vieten, C., & Wong, S. (In press, Spirituality in Clinical Practice) Novel Online Training Program Improves Spiritual Competencies in Mental Health Care Spirituality in Clinical Practice.

Wahbeh, H., Yount, G., Vieten, C., Radin, D., & Delorme, A. (2019). The noetic experience and belief scale: a validation and reliability study. F1000Research, 8, 1741. https://doi.org/10.12688/f1000research.20409.

Pearce, M. J., Pargament, K. I., Oxhandler, H. K., Vieten, C., & Wong, S. (2019). A novel training program for mental health providers in religious and spiritual competencies. Spirituality in Clinical Practice, 6(2), 73. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/scp0000195

Epel E, Laraia B, Coleman-Phox K, Leung C, Vieten C, Mellin L, Kristeller J, Thomas M, Stotland N, Bush N (2019). Effects of a mindfulness-based intervention on distress, weight gain, and glucose control for pregnant low-income women: A quasi experimental trial using the ORBIT mode. International Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12529-019-09779-2

Vieten, C,, Wahbeh, H., Cahn, B.R., MacLean, K., Estrada, M., Mills, P., Murphy, M., Shapiro, S., Radin, D., Josipovic, Z., Presti, D.E., Sapiro, M., Bays, J.C., Russell, P., Vago, D., Travis, F., Walsh, R. & Delorme, A. (2018).   Future directions in meditation research: Recommendations for expanding the field of contemplative science. PLOS ONE. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0205740

Headen, I., Laraia, B., Coleman-Phox, K., Vieten, C., Adler, N., Epel, E. (2018). Neighborhood Typology and Cardiometabolic Pregnancy Outcomes in the Maternal Adiposity Metabolism and Stress (MAMAS) Study.Obesity, 27(1), pp 166-173. https://doi.org/10.1002/oby.22356

Wahbeh, H.,  Radin, D., Mossbridge, J., Vieten, C., Delorme, A. (2018).  Exceptional experiences reported by scientists and engineers. Explore: The journal of science and healing. 14(5), 329-341. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.explore.2018.05.002

Roubinov, D. S., Felder, J. N., Vieten, C., Coleman-Phox, K., Laraia, B., Adler, N., ... & Bush, N. R. (2018). Maternal depressive symptoms and infant healthcare utilization: The moderating role of prenatal mindfulness. General Hospital Psychiatry. 53, pp. 82-83. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.genhosppsych.2018.01.001

Vieten, C., Laraia, B., Kristeller, J., Adler, N., Coleman-Phox, K., Bush, N., Wahbeh, H., Duncan, L.G., Epel, E. (2018).  The Mindful Moms Training: Development of a mindfulness-based intervention to reduce stress and overeating during pregnancy. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, (18), 201. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12884-018-1757-6

Felder, J.N., Roubinov, D., Bush, N., Coleman-Phox, K., Vieten, C., Laraia, B., Adler, N., & Epel, E. (2018).  Effect of prenatal mindfulness training on depressive symptom severity through 18-months postpartum: A latent class analysis. Journal of Clinical Psychology. 74(7) pp. 1117-1125. https://doi.org/10.1002/jclp.22592

Laraia, B. A., Adler, N. E., Coleman-Phox, K., Vieten, C., Mellin, L., Kristeller, J. L., … Epel, E. (2018). Novel Interventions to Reduce Stress and Overeating in Overweight Pregnant Women: A Feasibility Study.Maternal and Child Health Journal.  https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-018-2435-z

Epel E, Laraia B, Coleman-Phox K, Leung C, Vieten C, Mellin L, Kristeller J, Thomas M, Stotland N, Bush N (under review). Effects of a mindfulness-based intervention on distress, weight gain, and glucose control in pregnant low-income women: A controlled trial. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12529-019-09779-2 

Vieten, C., Scammell, S., Pierce, A., Pilato, R., Ammondson, I., Pargament, K. I., & Lukoff, D. (2016). Competencies for psychologists in the domains of religion and spirituality. Spirituality in Clinical Practice3(2), 92-114. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/scp0000078

Shapiro, S. L., Lyons, K. E., Miller, R. C., Butler, B., Vieten, C., & Zelazo, P. D. (2015). Contemplation in the classroom: a new direction for improving childhood education. Educational Psychology Review27(1), 1-30. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-014-9265-3 

Thomas, M., Vieten, C., Adler, N., Ammondson, I., Coleman-Phox, K., Epel, E., & Laraia, B. (2014). Potential for a stress reduction intervention to promote healthy gestational weight gain: Focus groups with low-income pregnant women. Women's Health Issues24(3), e305-e311. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.whi.2014.02.004

Vieten, C., Estrada, M., Cohen, A., Radin, D., Schlitz, M., Delorme, A. (2014). Engagement in a community-based integral practice program enhances well-beingThe International Journal of Transpersonal Studies, 33(2). http://dx.doi.org/10.24972/ijts.2014.33.2.1

Vieten, C., Scammell, S., Pilato, R., Ammondson, I., Pargament, K. I., & Lukoff, D. (2013). Spiritual and religious competencies for psychologists. Psychology of Religion and Spirituality5(3), 129. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0032699

Coleman-Phox, K., Laraia, B., Adler, N., Vieten C., Thomas, M., & Epel, E. (2013). Recruitment and Retention of Pregnant Women for a Behavioral Intervention: the Maternal Adiposity, Metabolism and Stress (MAMAS) Study. Preventing Chronic Disease,10:E31. PMCID: PMC3592785. Published online 2013 March 7. http://dx.doi.org/10.5888/pcd10.120096

Bobrow, J., Cook, E., Knowles, C. & Vieten C. (2013). Coming All the Way Home: Integrative Community Care for Those who Serve. Psychological Services, 10:2, 137-144. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0031279

Bowen S.W & Vieten, C. (2012). A Compassionate Approach to the Treatment of Addictive Behaviors: The Contributions of Alan Marlatt to the Field of Mindfulness-Based Interventions, Addiction Research & Theory. Addiction Therapy. 20(3), Jun. 2012, 243-249, https://doi.org/10.3109/16066359.2011.647132

Schiltz, M., Hopf, H., Eskenazi, L., Vieten, C., & Radin, D. (2012). Distant Healing Of Surgical Wounds: An Exploratory Study.  EXPLORE: The Journal of Science and Healing, July 2012, 8(4), 223-230. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.explore.2012.04.004

Gizer I.R, Ehlers C.L., Vieten, C., Feiler, Heidi S. Gilder, D. A., & Wilhelmsen, K.C. (2012). Genome-wide Linkage Scan of Antisocial Behavior, Depression and Impulsive Substance Use in the UCSF Family Alcoholism Study. Psychiatric Genetics. https://doi.org/10.1097/YPG.0b013e328353fb77

Radin, D.I., Vieten, C., Michel, L., DeLorme, A. (2011). Electrocortical activity prior to unpredictable stimuli in meditators and non-meditators. Explore, 7(5): 286-299. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.explore.2011.06.004

Schlitz, M., Vieten, C., Miller, E., Homer, K., Petersen, K. & Erickson-Freeman, K. (2011).  The Worldview Literacy Project: Exploring New Capacities for the 21st Century Student. Johns Hopkins University School of Education New Horizons for Learning, Winter 2011. Retrieved August 8, 2013 from http://education.jhu.edu/PD/newhorizons/Journals/Winter2011/Schlitz.   

Gizer, I.R., Ehlers, C.L., Vieten, C., Seaton-Smith, K.L., Feiler, H.S.,Lee, J.V., Segall, S.K., Gilder, D.A., & Wilhelmsen, K.C. (2011). Linkage scan of alcohol dependence in the UCSF Family Alcoholism Study. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 113: 2-3, pp. 125-132. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2010.07.017

Gizer, I.R., Ehlers, C.L., Vieten, C., Seaton-Smith, K.L., Feiler, H.S., Lee, J.V., Segall, S.K., Gilder, D.A., & Wilhelmsen, K.C. (2011). Linkage scan of nicotine dependence in the UCSF Family Alcoholism Study. Psychological Medicine, 41(4):799-808. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033291710001273

Schlitz, M.M., Vieten C., Erickson-Freeman, K. (2011). Conscious aging and worldview transformation.  Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, 43(2), 223-239. Retrieved from: https://www.atpweb.org/JournalTranspersonalResearch.aspx

Vieten C., Astin J., Buscemi R., Galloway G. (2010). Development of an acceptance-based coping intervention for alcohol dependence relapse prevention. Substance Abuse, 31:2, pp. 108-116.  https://doi.org/10.1080/08897071003641594

Schlitz, M.M., Vieten, C. & Miller, E.M. (2010). Worldview transformation and the development of social consciousness.  Journal of Consciousness Studies, 17:7-8, pp. 18-36. Retrieved from: https://www.imprint.co.uk/category/jcs-blog/

Ehlers, C.L., Gizer I.R., Vieten C., Gilder A., Gilder D.A., Stouffer G.M., Lau P., & Wilhelmsen K.C. (2010). Age at regular drinking, clinical course, and heritability of alcohol dependence in the San Francisco family study: A gender analysis. The American Journal on Addictions, 19:2, pp. 101-110. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1521-0391.2009.00021.x

Ehlers, C. L., Gizer, I. R., Vieten, C. & Wilhelmsen, K. C. (2010). Linkage analyses of cannabis dependence, craving, and withdrawal in the San Francisco family study. American Journal of Medical Genetics Part B: Neuropsychiatric Genetics, 153B: 802–811. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajmg.b.31050

Ehlers, C.L., Gizer, I.R, Vieten, C., Gilder, D.A., Stouffer, G.M., Lau, P. & Wilhelmsen, K.C. (2010). Cannabis dependence in the San Francisco Family Study: Age of onset of use, DSM-IV symptoms, withdrawal, and heritability. Addictive Behaviors, 35:2, pp. 102-110. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2009.09.009

Gizer, I.R., Seaton-Smith, K.L., Ehlers, C.L., Vieten, C., & Wilhelmsen, K.C. (2010). Heritability of MMPI-2 scales in the UCSF Family Alcoholism Study. Journal of Addictive Diseases, 29:1, pp. 84-97. https://doi.org/10.1080/10550880903436002

Vieten C., Astin J. (2008). Effects of a mindfulness-based intervention during pregnancy on prenatal stress and mood: Results of a pilot study. Archives of Women’s Mental Health, 11:1, 67-74.  https://doi.org/10.1007/s00737-008-0214-3

Carmody T., Vieten C., Astin J. (2008). Affect regulation, emotional acceptance, and nicotine dependence. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 39:4, 499-508. https://doi.org/10.1080/02791072.2007.10399889

Vieten C., Amorok T., Schlitz M. (2006). I to we: The role of consciousness transformation in compassion and altruism. Zygon: Journal of Religion and Science, 41:4, 917-933. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9744.2006.00788.x

Vieten C., Seaton K.L., Feiler H.S. & Wilhelmsen K. (2004). The UCSF family alcoholism study: I. Design, methods, and demographics.  Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, 28:10, 1509-1516. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.ALC.0000142261.32980.64

Vieten C., (2004). The role of transformation and spiritual engagement in human brain activity and immunity. San Francisco Medicine: Journal of the San Francisco Medical Society, 77:7, 28-31.

Seaton K., Cornell J., Wilhelmsen K., Vieten C. (2006) Effective strategies for recruiting families ascertained through alcoholic probands. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, 28:1, 78-84. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.ALC.0000107200.88229.57

Chapters

Vieten C., Estrada M. (2018). Making Change: On How to be an Agent of Transformation. In Kuntzelman, E. & DiPerna, D. (Eds.) Purpose Rising: A Global Movement of Purpose and Meaning. Berkeley, CA: Bright Alliance.

Bowen S., Vieten C., Witkiewitz, K. & Douglas, H. (2015). A mindfulness-based approach to addiction. In Brown, K.W., Creswell J.D., Ryan, R.M. (Eds.) Handbook of Mindfulness: Theory and Research. (pp 387 – 404)

Vieten C., Amorok T., Schlitz M. (2008). Many paths, one mountain: An integral approach to the science of transformation. In D.H. Johnson (Ed.), The meaning of life in the 21st century: Tensions among science, religion, and experience. (pp.265) New York: iUniverse.

Schlitz M., Vieten C., Amorok T. (2008). The Art and Science of Transformation. In Measuring the Immeasurable: The Scientific Case for Spirituality.  Boulder, CO: Sounds True Publications.

O’Connor L., Esherick M., Vieten C. (2001). Drug and alcohol abusing women. In S.L.A. Straussner & S. Brown (Eds.), The handbook of addiction treatment for women: theory and practice. New York: Jossey Bass.

Training Manuals and Facilitator’s Guides

Vieten C. (2013).  Mindful Motherhood: A Mindfulness-Based Stress-Reduction Program for Pregnant Women: Guidelines for Facilitators. (Behavioral Intervention Manual).  Petaluma, CA: Institute of Noetic Sciences.

Vieten C. (2012).  At Home Within: A Personal Growth Program for Homeless Shelters and other Social Service Agencies. (Behavioral Intervention Manual).  Petaluma, CA: Institute of Noetic Sciences.

Vieten C., Astin J. (2010). Acceptance-Based Intervention for Alcohol Relapse Prevention. (Behavioral Intervention Manual).  San Francisco, California Pacific Medical Center.

Popular Press Articles

Vieten C. (2013).  Mindful Motherhood: A Mindfulness-Based Stress-Reduction Program for Pregnant Women: Guidelines for Facilitators. (Behavioral Intervention Manual).  Petaluma, CA: Institute of Noetic Sciences.

Vieten C. (2012).  At Home Within: A Personal Growth Program for Homeless Shelters and other Social Service Agencies. (Behavioral Intervention Manual).  Petaluma, CA: Institute of Noetic Sciences.

Vieten C., Astin J. (2010). Acceptance-Based Intervention for Alcohol Relapse Prevention. (Behavioral Intervention Manual).  San Francisco, California Pacific Medical Center.

Abstracts/Poster Presentations

Vieten, C., DeLorme, A,, Wahbeh, H. (2018). Extraordinary Experiences in Meditation. (Presented at International Symposium for Contemplative Studies, Denver, CO)

Vieten C., DeLorme, A, Radin, D, Michel, L (2014). Psychophysiology of Spiritual Transmission. (Presented at Bial Foundation, Porto, Portugal)

Vieten C., Astin J. (2006). Effects of a mindfulness-based intervention during pregnancy on stress and mood outcomes. (Presented at Mind and Life Summer Research Institute, Garrison, NY)

Larenas M., Vieten C. (2001). Intergenerational differences in course of alcoholism in women. (Presented at College on Problems of Drug Dependence, annual scientific meeting, Tucson, AZ)

Pilato R.W., Vieten C., Wilhelmsen K.C., Jay C.A. (1999). Personality correlates of alcoholism in siblings: An exploratory study (Abstract). Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research 23(suppl 5):132A (1999). (Presented at the Research Society on Alcoholism, annual scientific meeting, Santa Barbara, CA) 

Vieten C., Pilato R.W., Wilhelmsen K.C., Jay C.A. (1999). Affect regulation and recovery from alcoholism (Abstract). Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research 23(suppl 5): 83A (1999). (Presented at the Research Society on Alcoholism, annual scientific meeting, Santa Barbara, CA)

Vieten C., Jay C.A., Wilhelmsen K.C., Wasserman D.A. (1999). Relationship of self-regulation to alcohol and nicotine dependence (Abstract). NIDA Research Monograph #180. (Presented at the College on Problems of Drug Dependence, annual scientific meeting, Acapulco, Mexico) 

Vieten C., Wilhelmsen K.C., Jay C.A. (1997). MMPI-2 substance abuse scales in a community-based research sample of alcoholics (Abstract). Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research 21(suppl 2):128A. (Presented at the Research Society on Alcoholism, annual scientific meeting, San Francisco, CA)