The San Francisco Bay Area Chapter ACBS is proud to present

Robyn Walser - ACT Boldly:

Advanced Process-Based Workshop

A 2-Day In-Person Experiential Training

Friday and Saturday May 9-10, 2025

12 CEs for Psychologists, LCSWs, and LPCCs (pending approval)

The Association for Contextual Behavioral Science is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. The Association for Contextual Behavioral Science maintains responsibility for this program and its content.

Course Description:

Join us for an engaging in-person workshop designed for both experienced and those newer to ACT looking to deepen their skills and expand their practice. Centered around four key themes—being bold, exploring the tension between meaning and meaninglessness, listening beneath the surface to identify the function of behavior in real time, and building awareness through perspective-taking—this workshop goes beyond theory to offer a rich, process-based experiential learning experience. While some didactic elements will be included, the focus will be on self-reflection exercises, live demonstrations, interactive discussions, and hands-on practice. Come ready to challenge yourself, connect with like-minded professionals, and refine your ability to navigate the complexities of human behavior with greater depth and confidence.

Four Themes:

Being bold – Cultivating willingness to take risks in therapy, step into discomfort, and model psychological flexibility for clients by embracing uncertainty and authenticity.

Meaningless and meaning – Exploring the tension between existential uncertainty and personal values, helping clients create meaning in the face of life’s inevitable ambiguity.

Listening beneath the surface – Developing the ability to catch behavioral patterns in the moment and discern their underlying function, allowing for more precise and effective interventions.

Building awareness and conscious living through perspective-taking – Expanding flexibility and insight by shifting viewpoints, fostering empathy, and deepening both therapist and client awareness of their experiences.

Target Audience:

This workshop is designed for mental health/helping professionals including social workers, coaches, counselors, psychiatrists and psychologists.  It is best for those who have at least an introductory understanding of ACT and would like to deepen their mastery of the process. If you have no prior background with ACT, you may want to take an introductory course such as ACT Basics.

Course Objectives:

After attending this retreat you will be able to:

1. Describe the role of committed action in cultivating boldness
2. Practice using functional analysis in microprocess fashion
3. Practice slowing down and adapting approach in response to what came before and working forward by remaining rooted in case conceptualization
4. Strengthen self as context through experiential work
5. Contrast existential avoidance with experiential openness
6. Help client learn to discriminate content for effective actions
7. Develop psychological flexibility by enhancing the ability to be bold in therapeutic practice, embracing uncertainty, and stepping outside of comfort zones.
8. Explore the interplay of meaning and meaninglessness to deepen understanding of how existential themes influence clients’ experiences and learn strategies to help them navigate this tension.
9. Refine functional analysis skills by strengthening the ability to “listen beneath the surface” and identify the function of behavior in real time, improving precision in interventions.
10. Cultivate perspective-taking and awareness through experiential exercises that foster a deeper, more flexible understanding of self and others, enhancing therapeutic presence and effectiveness.
11. Engage in experiential learning by participating in hands-on practice to integrate ACT processes fluidly into clinical work

Presenter:

Robyn D. Walser, Ph.D

Robyn D. Walser, Ph.D., is an internationally recognized clinical psychologist, educator, and author. She is the Director of Trauma and Life Consultation and Psychology Services, Assistant Professor at the University of California, Berkeley, and Director of Research at Bay Area Trauma Recovery Clinical Services.  Dr. Walser has contributed significantly to the dissemination of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and holds a pivotal role in implementing ACT in one of the US's largest national healthcare systems. She also works at the National Center for PTSD, where her work focus is on trauma recovery, depression, and moral injury. A writer and scholar, Dr. Walser has co-authored nine influential books on ACT, including the widely respected The Heart of ACT: Developing a Flexible, Process-Based, and Client-Centered Practice Using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. Her research and clinical expertise have made her a sought-after voice in advancing the application of ACT to address a variety of complex psychological challenges. Since 1997, Dr. Walser has led ACT workshops worldwide, bringing her deep understanding and passion for process -based, experiential learning to therapists and clinicians. Known for her compassionate and client-centered approach, Dr. Walser’s teaching emphasizes the integration of evidence-based practices with human connection and flexibility. Whether through her books, articles, or live training, Dr. Walser continues to influence the evolution of ACT and inspire professionals in their pursuit of effective, transformative therapy. To learn more about her work and join her newsletter list, visit robynwalser.com

Schedule

Friday May 9, 2025

• 8:00 - 9:00 Arrive and Sign-In (No CE's)
• 9:00 - 11:00 Being Bold (2 hrs)
• 11:00 - 11:15 Break (No CE's)
• 11:15 - 12:30 Demonstrating and Practicing Boldness(1.25 hrs)
• 12:30 - 2:00 Lunch (No CE's)
• 2:00 - 3:30 Listening Beneath the Surface (1.5 hrs)
• 3:30 - 3:45 Break (No CE's)
• 3:45 - 5:00 Demonstrating and Practicing Listening Beneath the Surface (1.25 hrs)

Saturday May 10, 2025

• 8:00 - 9:00 Arrive and Sign-In (No CE's)
• 9:00 - 11:00 Building Awareness through Perspective Taking (2 hrs)
• 11:00 - 11:15 Break (No CE's)
• 11:15 - 12:30 Demonstrating and Practicing Building Awareness through Perspective Taking (1.25 hrs)
• 12:30 - 2:00 Lunch (No CE's)
• 2:00 - 3:30 Meaning and Meaninglessness (1.5 hrs)
• 3:30 - 3:45 Break (No CE's)
• 3:45 - 5:00 Demonstrating and Practicing Meaning and Meaninglessness (1.25 hrs)

Fees

Professional Member early - By April 18	$400
Professional Member regular	$450
Professional Nonmember early – By April 18	$450
Professional Nonmember regular	$500
Student/Intern Member or Non Member	$200
CE Fee	$30

Join the Chapter and get the member discount

for this and future trainings

https://sfba-acbs.wildapricot.org/Join-The-Chapter

Included in the fees: 12 hours of instruction, coffee/tea, snacks, and lunch

Disclosures:

The costs of this workshop are completely supported by participant fees

Refund Policy

If you cancel your registration:
21 or more days before the date of the event, we’ll refund all of your registration fee or give you credit to a future event;
20 to 7 days before the event, we’ll refund 75% of your fee;
Fewer than 7 days before an event, we’ll refund 50% of your fee.
If you don’t cancel before the event begins, we can’t refund your fees, but we’ll give you a credit toward a future event in the amount of 50% of your registration fee. If we cancel an event for any reason, of course, we’ll refund all of your registration fees. Continuing-education certification fees can be refunded until the day before the event. They become non-refundable on the first day of the event. Continuing-education certification purchased at an event is non-refundable.

References

Walser, R. D., & O'Connell, M. (2021). Acceptance and commitment therapy and the therapeutic relationship: Rupture and repair. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 77(2), 429–440. https://doi.org/10.1002/jclp.23114.

Walser, R. D., & O'Connell, M. (2023). Alliance rupture and repair in acceptance and commitment therapy. In J. D. Safran & C. Muran (Eds.), Rupture and repair in psychotherapy: A critical process for change (pp. 165–186). American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/0000306-008

Walser, R. D. (2019). The heart of ACT: Developing a flexible, process-based, and client-centered practice using acceptance and commitment therapy. New Harbinger: Oakland, CA.

Wilson, K. G., & Sandoz, E. K. (2008). Mindfulness, values, and the therapeutic relationship in acceptance and commitment therapy. Mindfulness and the therapeutic relationship, 89-106.