Join Professor Warwick Middleton and Dr Kris Rao for an engaging webinar that delves into the therapeutic potential of humor in psychotherapy, with a special focus on how cultural traditions shape our identities. Drawing from his Australian bush upbringing, Professor Middleton will explore how humor is an integral part of cultural heritage and its role in the healing process. Dr Kris Rao will discuss case studies of famous therapists who have skillfully used humor in their practice, as well as research on the use of humor in therapy. He will highlight its impact on building rapport, enhancing therapy, and fostering a positive therapeutic environment. The session will explore how humor can strengthen therapeutic relationships, examine its cultural mechanisms, and discuss its therapeutic effects. Key insights will include the importance of a therapist’s sense of humor in fostering trust, using humor respectfully to promote empathy, and how it can stimulate personal growth and understanding in clients.

1. Middleton, W. (2007) Gunfire, Humour and Psychotherapy. Australasian Psychiatry.15(2):148-155. doi:10.1080/10398560601148358

Date: Wednesday, 23rd April, 2024

Time: 6:30 p.m to 8.00 p.m (Sydney/Melbourne/Canberra Time)

Venue: Online on Zoom (Zoom registration required. Please check your confirmation email)

Price: Free (Live Webinar Only)

$9.99 (Live Webinar &/or Access to Recording for 30 days)

CPD: 1.5 hours. 80% attendance of live webinar required.

About Prof Warwick Middleton: Professor Middleton holds appointments as Professor in the School of Medicine, University of Queensland, as well as Adjunct Professor - at the School of Public Health, La Trobe University; School of Behavioral, Cognitive & Social Sciences, University of New England; and, Department of Psychology, University of Canterbury. He has made substantial and ongoing contributions to the bereavement and trauma literatures, and was with Dr Jeremy Butler author of the first published series in the Australian scientific literature detailing the abuse histories and clinical phenomenology of patients fulfilling diagnostic criteria for Dissociative Identity Disorder. Professor Middleton chairs The Cannan Institute. He is a Past President of the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation (ISSTD). Widely published, he is currently the joint editor, with Martin Dorahy, of, Contemporary Perspectives on the Seduction Theory and Psychoanalysis: Revisiting Masson’s ‘The Assault on Truth’ (Routledge), which is due for publication in 2024. Prof Warwick Middletone is the first researcher to ever do systematic research into ongoing incestuous abuse during adulthood.

About Dr Kris Rao PsyD: Kris is a psychotherapist & a psychoanalyst primarily providing long term therapy for complex trauma disorders. He is also a clinical supervisor for the Australian and New Zealand Association of Psychotherapy (ANZAP) training program. He has a Master of Science in Medicine (Psychotherapy) and a Doctorate in Psychoanalysis. Kris teaches ethics & psychodynamic psychotherapy as adjunct faculty at universities and higher education institutions across Australia and New Zealand.

About eiseEducation: eiseEducation delivers exceptional webinars, short courses, and professional development training to the mental health, social services & community services sector across Australia & New Zealand. Findout more at eiseeducation.com. Find out more at eiseeducation.com

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