Interdisciplinary Process: Implications for Rehabilitation Psychology

The thesis presented here is that the rehabilitation process can be enhanced by working toward development of an interdisciplinary, as distinguished from multidisciplinary, mode of operation. That approach fosters a symbiotic and interactive process among professions and professionals that goes beyond a consultative relationship. Rehabilitation psychologists, by fostering and encouraging an interdisciplinary team and, within that context, by the studied use of behavioral methods, can enhance considerably their impact on patients and professionals alike. Examples of modifications of the treatment environment are used to illustrate.