Luis Botella

@blanquerna.url.edu

Facultat de Psicologia, Ciències de l'Educació i l'Esport Blanquerna (Universitat Ramon Llull, Barcelona)

Luis Botella


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https://researchid.co/botella

RESEARCH INTERESTS

Psychotherapy
48

Scopus Publications

Scopus Publications

  • Commentary: Still Becoming–The Ongoing Emergence of Personal Construct Psychology in a Fragmented Century
    Luis Botella
    Journal of Constructivist Psychology, 2026
  • Similarity Self/Ideal Index (SSI): A Feature-Based Approach to Modeling Psychological Well-Being
    Alejandro Sanfeliciano, Carlos Hurtado-Martínez, Luis Botella, Luis Angel Saúl
    Mathematics, 2025
    This paper introduces a similarity index aimed at modeling psychological well-being through a set-theoretic formalization of self–ideal alignment. Inspired by Tversky’s feature-based model of similarity, the proposed index quantifies the degree of overlap and divergence between the current self-perception and the ideal self, each represented as a vector of signed attributes. The formulation extends traditional approaches in Personal Construct Psychology by incorporating directional and magnitude-based comparisons across constructs, and its mathematical properties can be expressed within a fuzzy similarity space that ensures boundedness and internal coherence. Unlike standard correlational methods commonly used in psychological assessment, this model provides an alternative framework that allows for asymmetric weighting of discrepancies and non-linear representations of similarity. Developed within the WimpGrid formalism—a graph-theoretical extension of constructivist assessment—the index offers potential applications in clinical modeling, idiographic measurement, and the mathematical analysis of dynamic self-concept systems. We discuss its relevance as a generalizable tool for quantitative psychology, and its potential for integration into computational models of personality and self-organization.
  • Weighted Implication Grid: a graph-theoretical approach to modeling psychological change construction
    Alejandro Sanfeliciano, Luis Angel Saúl, Luis Botella
    Frontiers in Psychology, 2025
    IntroductionAnticipation and meaning-making are foundational processes in Personal Construct Psychology. Over the years, methodologies such as the Repertory Grid and Implication Grid have provided valuable tools for examining the anticipatory structure of personal meaning systems. Building on this tradition, the Weighted Implication Grid (WimpGrid) introduces a graph-theoretic and algebraic formalization of personal construct systems, aiming to enhance the modeling of psychological change as a dynamic and networked process.MethodThe WimpGrid is based on a semi-structured interview in which participants evaluate hypothetical transformations in their self-perception across a set of personal constructs. These anticipatory judgments are recorded in a numerical matrix and formalized as a weighted directed graph, where nodes represent constructs and edges quantify the perceived influence between them. From this structure, graph-theoretical indices are derived to examine properties such as construct centrality, system dynamics, and resistance to change.ApplicationsWimpGrid enables idiographic assessment in clinical settings, supporting case formulation, therapeutic planning, and longitudinal monitoring of psychological transformation. Additionally, it provides a formalized methodological platform for research into subjective change processes and personal meaning structures.DiscussionBy combining constructivist interviewing techniques with graph-theoretical modeling, WimpGrid offers a structured and flexible framework for investigating psychological change. It complements existing constructivist methodologies by providing tools for the quantitative analysis of complex meaning systems, and opens new avenues for theoretical refinement and empirical application.
  • Use of fuzzy cognitive maps in clinical supervision in psychotherapy
    Luis Angel Saúl, Luis Botella, Alejandro Sanfeliciano
    Revista De Psicoterapia, 2023
    El presente artículo se enfoca en la utilidad de los Mapas Cognitivos Borrosos como herramienta para la supervisión clínica en el ámbito de la psicoterapia. Estos mapas representan una herramienta versátil que facilita la conceptualización de casos clínicos desde dos perspectivas complementarias: la nomotética y la idiográfica. Desde la perspectiva nomotética, se utilizan los Mapas Cognitivos Borrosos para ordenar y organizar la experiencia que el cliente elabora en el diálogo terapéutico. Esto se logra mediante la creación de un mapa de sistema complejo que incorpora términos técnicos y conceptos clínicos de los campos de la psicopatología, la evaluación y el tratamiento. Esta representación en tercera persona permite una comprensión teórica, más profunda y estructurada de la situación clínica, fomentando la colaboración entre el supervisor y el supervisando. Desde la perspectiva idiográfica, se emplea una aproximación en primera persona que recoge el Sistema de Significados Personales del paciente, así como sus dinámicas de interacción. Lo que ayuda tanto al terapeuta, como al supervisor, a entender la construcción del problema desde la visión del cliente utilizando sus propios términos. Al combinarse con el mapa en tercera persona, se enriquece y complementa el panorama general, permitiendo una visión más completa de la dinámica clínica. El proceso de utilización de los Mapas Cognitivos Borrosos en la supervisión clínica está altamente protocolizado, lo que facilita la comunicación efectiva entre el supervisor y el supervisando.
  • Teamwork solutions for complex problems in psychotherapy: A systems thinking-based commentary
    Luis Botella, Elena Scherb, Adrian Montesano
    Journal of Clinical Psychology, 2023
    INTRODUCTION Most psychological treatments are administered in a one-to-one therapy format, which has proven effective but has limitations in complex clinical situations. Teamwork can help address these limitations by going beyond the one-to-one therapy approach and involving the client's professional and relational network in therapy interventions to promote and secure change. In this issue of Journal of Clinical Psychology: In Session five effective teamwork practices are presented illustrating how clinicians integrate teamwork into treatment delivery to improve outcomes in an array of cases presenting high complexity. PURPOSE In this commentary section, we describe the role and essence of these teamwork practices from a systems thinking approach as a theoretical umbrella to understand the diversity of processes hindering and facilitating effective teamwork CONCLUSSION: From this approach we discuss the core skills that psychotherapists should train to master team working and interprofessional collaboration. The basic professional competence consists in the ability to foster and coordinate shared frames of understanding in case formulation. An advanced systemic skill is based on the ability to formulate and change relational patterns, given that interpersonal processes are the main key factor to understand barriers and facilitators of effective teamwork to overcome stalemated complex clinical situations.
  • Editorial: Exploring human subjectivity
    Esteban Laso Ortiz, Luis Angel Saúl, Luis Botella
    Frontiers in Psychology, 2023
    data contain reliable and objective information: the method of derangements
  • What can I get from YouTubers and Instagrammers? Preferences of teenagers in Spain
    Sue Aran-Ramspott, Álvaro Moro Inchaurtieta, Lluís Botella García del Cid
    Icono14, 2022
    En el actual ecosistema digital, los contenidos y prácticas que generan redes sociales como YouTube o Instagram han facilitado la emergencia de un tipo de influencer o (micro)celebridad que, además de generar negocio (Vizcaíno-Verdú, De-Casas-Moreno & Ignacio Aguaded, 2019), ofrece unos modelos de autenticidad y estilos de vida, unas narrativas y unas influencias entre las generaciones Millennials y Centennials que requieren ser analizadas desde la percepción de los propios jóvenes usuarios. Para ello presentamos parte de los resultados de una investigación inédita de metodología mixta realizada en España que ha recogido las opiniones de adolescentes y jóvenes (12-18 años) de las Comunidades Autónomas de Catalunya, Baleares y Euskadi a partir de una muestra de 2.749 cuestionarios y nueve focus group durante el 2021, incluyendo el período afectado por la Covid19. Los resultados permiten observar qué plataformas prefieren, los motivos de preferencia, su aceptación o rechazo de determinados elementos comunicativos, sean tecnológicos, conectivos o discursivos, así como las características que parecen crear tendencia y favorecen su engagement hacia los influencers que prefieren.
  • Fuzzy Cognitive Maps as a Tool for Identifying Cognitive Conflicts That Hinder the Adoption of Healthy Habits
    Luis Angel Saúl, Alejandro Sanfeliciano, Luis Botella, Rafael Perea, Jose Antonio Gonzalez-Puerto
    International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2022
    Implementing healthy lifestyle habits can take a great effort and sticking to such prescriptions is complicated. Failure rates amongst people seeking to adopt a healthier diet are estimated to be around 80%. Exploring the network of meanings that an individual associates with adopting habits such as healthy eating, maintaining the correct weight, and practising physical exercise can reveal the inconsistencies, obstacles, or psychological conflicts that hinder change and target-achievement. Fuzzy cognitive maps (FCM) can be of great utility in this task as they allow us to explore the structure of the personal meaning system of an individual as well as determine any obstacles and simulate hypothetical scenarios that project its future evolution. This can help to identify the foci of cognitive conflicts that hinder the adoption of healthy habits and establish more effective personalised intervention programmes that make it easier to maintain these habits.
  • Coping with global uncertainty: Perceptions of COVID-19 psychological distress, relationship quality, and dyadic coping for romantic partners across 27 countries
    Ashley K. Randall, Gabriel Leon, Emanuele Basili, Tamás Martos, Michael Boiger, et al.
    Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 2022
    Following the global outbreak of COVID-19 in March 2020, individuals report psychological distress associated with the “new normal”—social distancing, financial hardships, and increased responsibilities while working from home. Given the interpersonal nature of stress and coping responses between romantic partners, based on the systemic transactional model this study posits that perceived partner dyadic coping may be an important moderator between experiences of COVID-19 psychological distress and relationship quality. To examine these associations, self-report data from 14,020 people across 27 countries were collected during the early phases of the COVID-19 pandemic (March–July, 2020). It was hypothesized that higher symptoms of psychological distress would be reported post-COVID-19 compared to pre-COVID-19 restrictions (Hypothesis 1), reports of post-COVID-19 psychological distress would be negatively associated with relationship quality (Hypothesis 2), and perceived partner DC would moderate these associations (Hypothesis 3). While hypotheses were generally supported, results also showed interesting between-country variability. Limitations and future directions are presented.
  • MAPPING PSYCHOLOGICAL SPACES: PSYCHOTHERAPEUTIC APPLICATIONS OF SYSTEM DYNAMICS IN FUZZY COGNITIVE MAPS OF PERSONAL CONSTRUCTS
    Luis Botella García del Cid
    Revista De Psicoterapia, 2021
    This paper presents an innovative procedure for deriving both Fuzzy Cognitive Maps and Behavior Over Time Graphsfrom Personal Construct Psychology’s Repertory Grids, via the intermediate step of eliciting an adaptation of Bipolar Implications Grids. This makes it possible to have a functional as well as structural model of the Personal Construct System and to test and simulate its anticipated dynamics in hypothetical scenarios, as well as to understand more fully its systemic properties. The paper focuses on the procedure itself, and it is illustrated by means of a case study so as to highlight its significant implications for psychotherapy research and practice.
  • Spanish Adaptation of the Relational Ethics Scale
    Mercè Rived-Ocaña, Maria L. Schweer-Collins, Martiño Rodríguez-González, Sarah A. Crabtree, Luís Botella-Garcia del Cid, et al.
    Contemporary Family Therapy, 2020
  • Psychotherapist Interventions Coding System (PICS) A systematic analysis of rhetoric mechanisms in psychotherapy
    Olga Herrero, Adriana Aulet, Daniela Alves, Catarina Rosa, Lluís Botella
    Narrative Inquiry, 2019
  • The autobiographical group: A tool for the reconstruction of past life experience with the aged
    Luis Botella, Guillem Feixas
    Meaning of Reminiscence and Life Review, 2019
  • Adaptation and psychometric properties of the Spanish version of the yp-core (Young Person's Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation)
    Actas Espanolas De Psiquiatria, 2018
  • Therapeutic alliance: Evolution and relationship with attachment in psychotherapy
    M. Rossetti, L. Botella
    Revista Argentina De Clinica Psicologica, 2017
  • A mindfulness training program based on brief practices (M-PBI) to reduce stress in the workplace: a randomised controlled pilot study
    M. Arredondo, M. Sabaté, N. Valveny, M. Langa, R. Dosantos, et al.
    International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health, 2017
  • psychotherapy integration in psychotherapists in training: Attribution of common factors and specific ingredients to prototypical cases of five theoretical approaches
    Revista Argentina De Clinica Psicologica, 2016
  • Making sense of immigration processes: Overcoming narrative disruption
    Berta Vall, Lluís Botella
    Narrative Inquiry, 2015
  • Increasing responsibility, safety, and trust through a dialogical approach: A case study in couple therapy for psychological abusive behavior
    Berta Vall, Jaakko Seikkula, Aarno Laitila, Juha Holma, Luis Botella
    Journal of Family Psychotherapy, 2014
  • Narrative assessment: Differences between anxious and depressed patients
    Berta Vall, Lluís Botella
    Narrative Inquiry, 2014
  • Establecimiento de categorías de análisis lingüístico a partir del discurso de un paciente con trastorno obsesivo compulsivo, mediante técnicas de procesamiento automático del lenguaje natural
    Revista Argentina De Clinica Psicologica, 2014
  • Maintenance of the Effects of Cognitive Behavioral and Relational Constructivist Psychotherapies in the Treatment of Women with Postpartum Depression: A Randomized Clinical Trial
    Ricardo Tavares Pinheiro, Lluis Botella, Luciana de Avila Quevedo, Karen Amaral Tavares Pinheiro, Karen Jansen, et al.
    Journal of Constructivist Psychology, 2014
  • Efficacy of a dilemma-focused intervention for unipolar depression: Study protocol for a multicenter randomized controlled trial
    Guillem Feixas, Arturo Bados, Eugeni García-Grau, Adrián Montesano, Gloria Dada, et al.
    Trials, 2013
  • Diferentes estilos de clientes and construcción de la alianza con un terapeuta
    Revista Argentina De Clinica Psicologica, 2013
  • The meaning of your absence: Traumatic loss and narrative reconstruction
    Loss of the Assumptive World A Theory of Traumatic Loss, 2013