“Quality of Life Therapy and Coaching (QOLTC) is, by far, the best and most comprehensive system of positive psychology intervention available.”
–Robert Biswas-Diener.
Pioneering, Research Supported and Taught Around the World
The Quality of Life Inventory and the Quality of Life Therapy approach to positive psychology intervention has been featured and cited in recent textbooks and in the writings of founder, Marty Seligman, as pioneering, evidence-based, and one of only eight comprehensive theories in the world:
Compton, W.C. & Hoffman, E. (2013). Positive Psychology: The Science of Happiness and Flourishing (2nd Edition). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. ISBN-13: 978-1111834128.
Quality of Life Therapy [and Coaching] is one of only eight theoretical and intervention approaches in the world to well-being and happiness. Quality of Life Therapy and the Quality of LIfe Inventory are evidence-based or empirically validated.
“Quality of Life Therapy uses the results of assessment to create interventions that can be used to increase life satisfaction. Indeed, studies of Quality of Life Therapy have found that it can be a very useful strategy for fostering greater well-being (page 47).”
Carr, A. (2011). Positive Psychology: The Science of Happiness and Human Strengths (2nd Edition). NY: Routledge. ISBN-13: 978-0415602358.
“Frisch’s Quality of Life Therapy is an integration of cognitive therapy practices with ideas from positive psychology. In this approach happiness is conceived as the fulfillment of cherished wishes in 16 significant life domains. At the start of therapy or intervention, clients complete the Quality of Life Inventory that yields an overall score and normed scores on all of these domains and suggests areas that may be a focus of intervention (pages 341-342).
Rashid, T. & Seligman, M. (2014). Positive psychotherapy (pp. 466; 461-498). In Danny Wedding & Raymond J. Corsini’s (Eds. Current Psychotherapies (10th Ed.). Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole, Cengage Learning. ISBN: 978-1-285-08371-1.
“Only a handful of interventions during the last quarter of the previous century attended to the positive resources of of clients…Frisch’s Quality-of-Life-Therapy integrates Cognitive Therapy with Positive Psychology and has been shown to be effective with depressed clients (Grant, Salcedo, Hynan, Frisch, & Puster, 1995). These early positive psychology interventions were the exception and not the rule in an era of deficit-oriented psychosocial treatments.”(page 466).
Third NIH-grant funded study of Quality of Life Therapy which is in progress:
http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02088619?term=NCT02088619&rank=1
Multi-site VA Grant-Funded Study with Quality of Life Inventory:
http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct/show/NCT01817712?order=1
Upcoming Book and Book Chapter:
Frisch, Michael B. & Diener, Ed (2015). What Therapists Need to Know about the Necessity of Positive Feelings for Mental Health. Invited chapter: A. Wood & J. Johnson (Eds.). Positive Clinical Psychology. New York: Wiley.
New Coaching Trial Just Completed:
Quality-of-Life-Therapy to Enhance Self-Regulation in Muslim Women: A Randomized Coaching Trial
“I heartily recommend Dr. Michael Frisch’s book to positive psychology coaches and clinical practitioners of all persuasions. The book presents state-of-the-art findings in positive psychology, brought to life with practical exercises that make the research findings accessible to readers. Frisch’s volume can jump-start the work of any practitioner in terms of integrating positive approaches into his or her practice. Accompanying the book is a CD Toolkit which provides copies and details of all of the exercises, handouts, and worksheets needed to fully implement the material discussed in the book. This is a valuable resource on its own.
“Quality of Life Therapy and Coaching (which uses and is based on the Quality of Life Inventory or QOLI®) is the number one guide for clinical psychologists who wish to learn positive psychology techniques for their clients.”
–Ed Diener —(2015 and 2006, From his foreword to the Frisch book, Quality of Life Therapy )
University of Illinois’ Joseph R. Smiley Distinguished Professor of Psychology
Senior Research Scientist, Gallup Institute for Global Well-Being
The World Authority on Happiness Research
“The most promising quality of life instrument available is the Quality of Life Inventory (pp.92)”
–In Michael J. Lambert’s, Benjamin Ogles, & Kevin Masters’ Assessing Outcome in Clinical Practice NY: Allyn and Bacon
“Dr. Frisch has developed an easily administered, valid, and highly useful instrument in the Quality of Life Inventory™ (QOLI®). Not only does it tap an important realm of psychosocial functioning–the quality of life–but it may function as a practical gauge of treatment progress or outcome.
-Theodore Millon, Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus
Harvard Medical School
and the University of Miami
Review of QOLI studies and a new study with over 3,000 participants demonstrating the QOLI’s ability to predict success in college one to three years in advance. Assessment is one of the top peer reviewed assessment journals in the world:
–Frisch, M. B., Clark, M. P., Rouse, S. V., Rudd, M. D., Paweleck, J., & Greenstone, A. (2005). Predictive and treatment validity of life satisfaction and the Quality of Life Inventory. Assessment, 12(1), 66-78.
“There is no construct more clinically significant and important than quality of life and the Quality of Life Inventory measures it admirably. The QOLI® is useful in treatment planning and progress/outcome evaluation.
-Alan E. Kazdin, Ph.D.
Professor of Psychology
Yale University
“As for Quality of Life Therapy and Coaching, this bold and exciting new positive therapy is a dynamic and sophisticated new way to approach coaching that is impressive for its comprehensive interventions. We are particularly excited about QOLTC because it relies on scientifically supported measures and has itself been validated as an approach that can increase happiness. ”
–pp. 95-113, in the book, Positive Psychology Coaching (2007) by Robert Biswas-Diener and Ben Dean of Mentor-Coach and published by John Wiley and Sons.
“Quality of Life Therapy and Coaching or QOLTC is psychology at its best–theoretical and practical. “Quality of Life Therapy and Coaching is an extremely important development that should be of interest to all clinicians and coaches. The book, Quality of Life Therapy, is fascinating and filled with insights about how to cultivate the good life. Professor Frisch has my gratitude.”
–The Late Christopher Peterson
Professor of Psychology
University of Michigan
Ann Arbor
____________________________________________________________
“In Michael Frisch’s marvelous new book, Quality of Life Therapy, we are
treated to a tour de force from a world-renowned quality of life
theoretician, researcher, and practitioner. There are only two or three
people who are totally qualified to write a book such as this one, and
Dr. Frisch is at the top of that list. Without question, positive
psychology will take an important step forward with the publication of
Quality of Life Therapy.”
–the late, C. R. Snyder
Distinguished Professor of Psychology, The University of Kansas,
Lawrence
Highlights of American Psychological Association Review of Quality of Life Therapy and Coaching:
“Striking about this book is the relationship Frisch develops with his readers. This author is a disciplined researcher and a passionate clinician. He is also a fervent educator. The last few pages of each chapter seem to repeatedly say, “Let me tell you one more thing!” In reading the book or manual for Quality of Life Therapy and Coaching (qoltc), entitled “Quality of Life Therapy” (Frisch, 2006, John Wiley & Sons), and in viewing the accompanying CD-ROM of client exercises, readers feel mentored by someone who is rooting for them.
“Early in the book, Frisch quotes John Rush, his former mentor, who told him “not to trust authors who wrote about therapy without having a passion for doing it themselves” (p. 4). Frisch also passes this test. His book contains an optimism about clinical/coaching practice and, more importantly, about human beings. Throughout the text, Frisch seems to be saying that the most effective therapists/coaches love their work. They also love people. This positive tone pervades the text.
“Although the theory, research, and application of QOLTC may take center stage in this book, it may be Frisch’s understated yet visible moral compass that may move his readers most. He reminds us that doing therapy/coaching ethically, passionately, and effectively can help us find genuine satisfaction in our own lives.
“Happiness, Frisch writes, “comes largely from having our needs, wants and goals fulfilled in the areas of life that we care about; this includes happiness as we meet subgoals in the journey toward fulfillment in valued areas of life” (p. 28). QOLTC advocates the importance of revising goals, standards, and priorities as a strategy for increasing happiness (Emmons, 2003). Besides a clear appreciation of his cognitive therapy roots, Frisch respectfully includes Rogerian, existential, gestalt, systems, Adlerian, and other theoretical perspectives in his approach.
“Fundamental to QOLTC is the “Five Paths to Happiness” blueprint for positive psychology intervention (or CASIO model of life satisfaction). The Five Paths to Happiness and Life Satisfaction are a person’s Circumstances, Attitudes, and Standards. CASIO also factors in the Importance or value an individual places on meeting a particular need. Finally, the Oelement refers to “the assumption that overall satisfaction may be increased by boosting satisfaction in any valued area of life, even areas Other than those of immediate concern” (p. 22). This model is a continuing thread throughout the book, effectively uniting chapters devoted to a variety of issues, including self-esteem, health, relationships, and learning.
“The author provides a great deal of material on the theory and application of QOLTC. There is little chance the reader will feel cheated. With two forewords, 330 large pages of text, and an equally generous CD-ROM of positive psychology exercises for clients, this work covers extensive territory. Although much of this material may be described as food for thought, the strength of this book is in its applications. Quality of Life Therapy provides valuable lessons that can be put to immediate use.
–Furey, R. (2007). Beyond Feeling Better: Adding Happiness to the Treatment Plan. American Psychological Association Review of Books or PsycCRITIQUES [serial online]. 2007;52(5). Available from: PsycINFO, Ipswich, MA.
Positive External Peer Reviews of Positive Psychology and Quality of Life Scholarship
“I heartily recommend Dr. Michael Frisch’s book to positive psychology
and clinical practitioners of all persuasions. The book presents
state-of-the-art findings in positive psychology, brought to life with
practical exercises that make the research findings accessible to
readers. Frisch’s volume can jump-start the work of any practitioner in
terms of integrating positive approaches into his or her practice.
Accompanying the book is a CD Toolkit which provides copies and details of all of the exercises, handouts, and worksheets needed to fully implement the material discussed in the book. This is a valuable resource on its own. ”
From the foreword by Ed Diener,
University of Illinois’ Distinguished Professor of Psychology and
Senior Research Scientist, Gallup International Positive Psychology Center
World Authority on Happiness with over 200 publications in top psychology journals.
____________________________________________________________
“Frisch’s Quality of Life Therapy is psychology at its best–theoretical and practical. The book is fascinating and filled with insights about how to cultivate the good life. Professor Frisch has my gratitude.”
The Late Christopher Peterson
Professor of Psychology
University of Michigan
Ann Arbor
— Dr. Peterson also recommends the book, Quality of Life Therapy in his book, A Primer in Positive Psychology just published in 2006 by Oxford University Press—page 313.
____________________________________________________________
“In Michael Frisch’s marvelous new book, Quality of Life Therapy, we are
treated to a tour de force from a world-renowned quality of life
theoretician, researcher, and practitioner. There are only two or three
people who are totally qualified to write a book such as this one, and
Dr. Frisch is at the top of that list. Without question, positive
psychology will take an important step forward with the publication of
Quality of Life Therapy.”
–C. R. Snyder
Wright Distinguished Professor of Psychology, The University of Kansas,
Lawrence
Editor of the Handbook of Positive Psychology
____________________________________________________________
“As psychotherapists we rarely address issues of happiness, contentment,
and quality life. At last psychologists like Ed Diener, Martin Seligman
and now Michael Frisch have begun to readdress this imbalance….In this
book Michael Frisch proposes a[n]integration of the positive psychology and cognitive therapy perspectives…[which]has the potential to enrich both
cognitive therapy and positive psychology. Treating negative mood will not automatically lead to happiness and life satisfaction in our patients.
Instead the single most important message from this volume is that a new
and expanded therapeutic perspective is needed that directly addresses
issues of positive affect, life satisfaction and contentment.”
From the foreword by David A. Clark, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology,
University of New Brunswick and
Founding Fellow in Aaron T. Beck’s Academy of Cognitive Therapy.
____________________________________________
Behavioral Medicine. Dr. Frisch’s book is innovative and exceptional in three distinct ways: first, in translating theory and science into practical solutions for use in everyday clinical practice; second, in providing clinicians with the tools to enhance the lives and wellbeing of our clients; and third, in bringing the concept of positive psychology to life. Happiness and life satisfaction are essential components of our quality of well-being. Frisch’s Quality of Life Therapy is a valuable and creative approach to facilitating personal growth for adults in many clinical as well as non-clinical settings. I have personally found this approach to be effective in my work with adults who have serious and debilitating medical illnesses—for example, see the following randomized controlled trial of Quality of Life Therapy: Rodrigue, J. R., Baz, M.A., Widows, M.R. , & Ehlers, S.L. (2005). “A Randomized Evaluation of Quality of Life Therapy with Patients Awaiting Lung Transplantation”. American Journal of Transplantation, Volume 5, #10, 2425-2432. From page 2430 of article:
Several primary findings emerged from this study. First, a brief, targeted psychological intervention, that is, Quality of Life Therapy, with wait-listed lung transplant patients leads to significant improvement in quality of life, mood disturbance, and social intimacy. Second, improvements in quality of life and mood appear to be maintained for as long as 3 months after treatment. Third, while supportive therapy/treatment as usual appears to yield some short-term benefits in mood, Quality of Life Therapy is a more effective treatment overall.
–James R. Rodrigue, Ph.D.
Harvard Medical School and
The Transplant Center of Beth Israel
Deaconess Medical Center
110 Francis Street, LMOB – Suite 7
Boston, MA 02215
(617) 632-9821
(617) 632-9807
jrrodrig@bidmc.harvard.edu
______________________________________Industrial-Organizational Psychology, Organizational Change, and Executive Coaching.
“I have had the opportunity to review the manuscript for the book titled Quality of Life Therapy: Applying a Life Satisfaction Approach to Positive Psychology and Cognitive Therapy by Dr. Michael Frisch. The bottom line is that Michael Frisch’s manuscript is on the cutting edge for both the audience of current practitioners and academia–in the fields of Consulting Psychology, Industrial-Organizational Psychology, and Executive Development and Coaching.
Positive Psychology and Executive Coaching are “hot topics” in the field of I/O or consulting psychology and appears to be a “hot button” for CEO’s. As in the 1960’s it was chic to have a psychotherapist, today CEO’s prefer to have an “executive coach” as one of their perks. How long this trend will continue at its current height of interest is difficult to predict. The truth is that the outcomes of executive coaching have a meager empirical research base and that rigorous research is needed to study its effectiveness and its multi-faceted approaches. Then we can make useful predictions as to where the field will be in future years. Dr. Frisch’s through review and documentation of the research literature is a great help in advancing this effort.
Dr. Frisch’s manuscript’s is a compendium of quality and thoroughness. A hallmark of the book is its clear, readable style. Overall, the integration of theory, research and practice is excellent. Also, from my perspective, Dr. Frisch’s applications of QOLT are using ground breaking and empirically driven consultation interventions pertinent for the Positive Psychology scholarship of organizational psychology (Industrial/Organizational Psychology) and relates directly to executive development. Especially attractive aspects of the manuscript are the wide variety of experiential exercises, questionnaires and models. As can be noted with the Toolbox CD that accompanies his book, Dr. Frisch is a leader in developing these types of training techniques.
Dr. Paul Lloyd
Past-President of the American Psychological Association’s Society of Consulting Psychology
Professor
Department of Psychology
Southeast Missouri State University
One University Plaza
Cape Giradeau, MO 63701
****
Dr. Martin Seligman ‘s
Masters of Applied Positive Psychology Program
at University of Pennsylvania
The Quality Of Life Therapy book has been adopted at the University of Pennsylvania in Martin Seligman’s premiere graduate program in positive psychology—see http://www.sas.upenn.edu/CGS/graduate/mapp/ .
To: ACT@LISTSERV.LOUISVILLE.EDU
Subject: Re: [ACT] integrating positive psych into clinical practice
Dear Mike,
I taught a course entitled “Positive Interventions in the Clinic” using your book “Quality of Life Therapy.” My students were in Marty Seligman’s Master’s of Applied Positive Psychology program at University of Pennsylvania. Most had little, if any, clinical experience. The students and I loved the book! In fact, next year it may be required reading for all students in the program and not just the ones who take my course. Your book is a great combination of practical and theoretical material and the toolbox CD is really innovative. I’m grateful to you for making my job so easy!
Judy Saltzberg, Ph.D.
Masters of Applied Positive Psychology Program
University of Pennsylvania
***
Here is an unsolicited letter from Sasha Heinz, a graduate of Marty Seligman’s Masters of Applied Positive Psychology Program:
From: Sasha Heinz
To: Frisch, Michael B.
Subject: Student of Martin Seligman
Dear Dr. Frisch,
I am a student of Dr. Martin Seligman at the Masters of Applied Positive Psychology Program at UPenn. We are reading your book Quality of Life Therapy for our clinical psychology class and I haven’t been able to put it down since the first assignment.
Thank you so much and best wishes,
Sasha Heinz
Graduate from Marty Seligman’s Masters of Applied Positive Psychology Program
“Frisch’s emphasis on happiness, meaning, purpose, virtue, spirituality, and other quality of life (QOL) issues are reminiscent of humanistic psychology. Frisch’s respect for the present menu of coaching techniques and psychotherapies is more than etiquette. The purpose of Quality of Life Therapy is not to replace these other approaches but to make its own contribution to the field. The Quality of Life Therapy approach develops and enhances the existing landscape by respectfully adding to it, rather than correcting it.”
Robert Fury, Ph.D.
American Psychological Association Book Reviewer