In this episode, Dr Tony Weston unpacks a big question: if CBT, psychodynamic, humanistic and other models all show similar outcomes, what is actually changing in people? Drawing on his biochemistry background, research methods teaching, and award-winning outcomes research, he explains the “dodo bird effect” and why it suggests therapies work by growing human capacities, not just treating diagnostic labels. Using the Lifelong Capacities Map® (12 capacities, 48 competencies), Tony shows how common therapeutic factors like empathy, congruence and positive regard repeatedly activate skills such as 1.2 Adaptive Emotional Processing, 4.1 Empathic Attunement, 4.2 Relational Repair, 3.4 Healthy Self-Worth, 10.1 Self-Reflection & Insight, 12.1 Meaning-Making in Suffering, and how these then cascade into 7.2 Intrinsic Motivation, 8.2 Somatic Attunement, 9.1 Accurate Reality Appraisal and more. Through Amina’s story, you’ll see how focusing on capacities like 1.1 Self-Regulation, 4.4 Boundaries and 10.3 Self-Monitoring turns “Which therapy is best?” into “Which skills am I growing?”
