Psychiatric Interviewing: The Art of Understanding
A Practical Guide for Psychiatrists, Psychologists, Counselors, Social Workers, Nurses, and Other Mental Health Professionals, with online video modules, Third Edition
When I was a first-year resident (many, many years ago!), I came across an earlier edition of this book that has now become a classic in the field. I was both taken aback and excited to see that it was full of so many tips about interviewing that I was unaware of despite having already done a residency in psychiatry in India and working for two years after that. I think that it remains true today–or perhaps is even truer today–that not only all trainees in mental health but also those of us with some experience will benefit from studying Shea’s book. So when I heard that a new, third edition of the book was due to be released, I immediately preordered it on Amazon.com.
Click on the link or the image below to view the book on Amazon.com:
by Shawn Christopher Shea MD and Jan Fawcett MD
A ton of material is new in the third edition. In addition to covering all aspects of the psychiatric interview, the book has many special features that make it unique.
– It comes with a free ebook version of the book.
– Included are 7.5 hours of streaming video. In the videos, Shea demonstrates the techniques he teaches and also comments on the interviews. As we read a particular chapter, there is a prompt to view a particular video. Thus, the text and the video are integrated.
– Shea explains the concepts and frameworks underlying the interview techniques rather than simply listing what he recommends.
– The book includes Shea’s unique approaches to uncovering sensitive material including suicidal ideation that have been widely recognized as masterpieces of technique.
In his forward, Jan Fawcett MD writes that these videos are: “…unparalleled in the history of mental health training. I have never seen such great teaching videos on eliciting suicidal ideation. They are a treasure, and I believe that many lives will be saved by those lucky enough to view them.”
– Five bonus chapters on Advanced and Specialized Interviewing Techniques. These include chapters on Motivational Interviewing and on the Medication Interest Model, which explains more than forty interviewing techniques to improve adherence to medications. Non-adherence to medication has been called the biggest problem in psychopharmacology, so all prescribing clinicians should read this chapter carefully.
I sincerely hope that all residency programs will make this book a standard required textbook. Let us move away from cookie cutter approaches and checklist diagnosis. Our profession needs nothing less than the sophisticated approach that Shea guides us in learning.
Interviewing skills are to a mental health clinician what surgical techniques are to a surgeon. Let us all continue to practice and continually improve our craft, with Shea’s book close at hand.
From other reviewers:
“Intensely practical, with a riveting chapter on the assessment of risk for suicide and homicide. . . . . Reviewers have a way of telling you that a good book is essential for every psychiatric library. This time it really is true.” — Canadian Journal of Psychiatry
“…a valuable counter-weight to the ‘one size fits all’ approach to interviewing and eliciting data.” –Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry
“Enormously practical, elegant in execution and delightfully fun to read, every page holds clinical wisdom . . . . an unsurpassed book about how to interview” — Jan Fawcett, MD
Click on the link below to view the book on Amazon.com:
Psychiatric Interviewing: The Art of Understanding
Table of Contents
Part I: Clinical Interviewing: the Principles Behind the Art
1. The Delicate Dance: Engagement and Empathy
2. Beyond Empathy: Cornerstone Concepts and Techniques for Enhancing Engagement
3. The Dynamic Structure of the Interview: Core Tasks, Strategies, and the Continuum
of Open-Endedness
4. Facilics: The Art of Transforming Interviews into Conversations
5. Validity Techniques for Exploring Sensitive Material and Uncovering the Truth
6. Understanding the Person Beneath the Diagnosis: the Search for Uniqueness, Wellness,
and Cultural Context
7. Assessment Perspectives and the Human Matrix: Bridges to Effective Treatment Planning
in the Initial Interview
8. Nonverbal Behavior: The Interview as Mime
Part II: The Interview and Psychopathology: from Differential Diagnosis to Understanding
9. Mood Disorders: How to Sensitively Arrive at a Differential Diagnosis
10. Interviewing Techniques for Understanding the Person Beneath the Mood Disorder
11. Psychotic Disorders: How to Sensitively Arrive at a Differential Diagnosis
12. Interviewing Techniques For Understanding the Person Beneath the Psychosis
13. Personality Disorders: Before the Interview Begins – Core Concepts
14. Personality Disorders: How to Sensitively Arrive at a Differential Diagnosis
15. Understanding and Effectively Engaging People with Difficult Personality Disorders:
the Psychodynamic Lens
Part III: Mastering Complex Interviewing Tasks Demanded in Everyday Clinical Practice
16. The Mental Status: How to Perform and Document It Effectively
17. Exploring Suicidal Ideation: The Delicate Art of Suicide Assessment
18. Exploring Violent and Homicidal Ideation: From Domestic Violence to Mass Murder
Part IV: Specialized Topics & Advanced Interviewing – Bonus Material Online
19. Transforming Anger, Confrontation, and Other Points of Disengagement
20. Culturally Adaptive Interviewing: The Challenging Art of Exploring Culture, Worldview,
and Spirituality
21. Vantage Points: Bridges to Psychotherapy
22. Motivational Interviewing (MI): A Foundation Stone in Collaborative Interviewing
23. Medication Interest Model (MIM): Moving from Mere “Adherence” to Genuine Interest
and Effective Use
Glossary & Appendices
Appendix I: An Introduction to the Facilic Schematic System – A Shorthand for Supervisors and
Supervisees (Interactive Computer Module)
Appendix II: Annotated Initial Interview (Direct Transcript of an Actual Patient Interview)
Appendix III: The Written Document/Electronic Health Record (EHR): Effective Strategies
IIIA Practical Tips for Creating a Good EHR/Written Document
IIIB Prompts and Quality Assurance Guidelines for the EHR/Written Document
IIIC Sample Written Initial Assessment (Actual document created from patient interview
in Appendix II)
IIID Blank Prototypic Initial Clinical Assessment Form
Appendix IV: Specially Re-Printed Articles from the Psychiatric Clinics of North America
Group A: Three articles for clinicians and trainees on advanced clinical interviewing topics
Group B: Four articles for faculty and interviewing mentors on training and supervision strategies/models
Glossary of Interview Supervision Terms
Disclosure: The links above are Amazon affiliate links. Buying products from Amazon.com using links on this website helps to support this website at no additional cost to the purchaser. But, we still want to be fully transparent about this.
Related Pages
Psychiatric Interviewing: Interview with Shawn Christopher Shea, MD
BEST books on Psychiatric Interviewing and Evaluation
BEST Books on Suicide Risk Assessment and Management
What are the BEST books on each topic related to psychiatry/ mental health?
Copyright © 2017 to 2025, Simple and Practical Medical Education, LLC. All rights reserved. The content on this website may not be reproduced in any form without express written permission.
Disclaimer: The material on this website is provided as general education for medical professionals. It is not intended for patients or other laypersons, nor is it a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Patients must always consult a qualified healthcare professional regarding their diagnosis and treatment. Healthcare professionals should always check this website for the most up-to-date information.
Leave a Reply