Functional Analysis and Behavioral Activation for Substance Use

In this video program, Dr. Carl W. Lejuez demonstrates and discusses his approach to therapy by working with a client seeking treatment for comorbid substance use and depression.

The video highlights how the assessment provided with a functional analysis can lead seamlessly into the introduction of brief behavioral activation. This combined approach uses functional analysis to identify the environmental factors maintaining the substance use and depression, then transitions into a brief behavioral activation to help the client understand how refocusing one's life with valued activities can help create an environment conducive to a more meaningful, substance-free life.

Functional analysis is arguably the most foundational assessment approach in behavior therapy, yet demonstrational materials that provide a detailed "how to" for this approach are limited. The same could be argued for behavioral activation, which is a frontline behavior therapy but with limited training materials available. Both approaches are highly suitable for combining with other approaches.

Carl W. Lejuez, PhD, is currently the dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and a professor in the department of psychology at the University of Kansas. He previously served as a professor and the director of clinical training in the clinical psychology program at the University of Maryland, where he also was the founding director of the Center for Addictions, Personality, and Emotion Research.

He is the founding editor of Personality Disorders: Theory, Research, and Treatment published by APA.

Dr. Lejuez has published more than 250 articles and book chapters, and his work has been consistently funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) since 2002. His research seeks to create novel evidence-based interventions for substance users with a focus on approaches that simultaneously address multiple comorbid conditions among patients from low income regions in the U.S. and abroad.

Beyond his administrative and research activities, he has a strong interest in mentorship and professional development for students. He has served as a mentor or co-mentor for more than 20 NIH and National Science Foundation individual training fellowships and was the director of an NIH predoctoral training program at the intersection of neuroscience and addiction treatment development.

APA Videos

• Cognitive–Behavioral Relapse Prevention for Addictions
  G. Alan Marlatt
• Drug and Alcohol Abuse
  William Richard Miller
• Ericksonian Hypnotherapy for an Impulse Problem
  Jeffery K. Zeig
• Mindfulness for Addiction Problems
  G. Alan Marlatt
• Smoking Cessation
  Bonnie J. Spring

APA Books

• Handbook of Clinical Hypnosis, Second Edition
  Edited by Steven Jay Lynn, Judith W. Rhue, and Irving Kirsch
• Preventing Youth Substance Abuse: Science-Based Programs for Children and Adolescents
  Edited by Patrick Tolan, José Szapocznik, and Soledad Sambrano