DBT Skills in the Real World – Helping Clinicians Deliver Skills Training Outside Comprehensive DBT Programs with Jesse Finkelstein, PsyD
General Information
Title: DBT Skills in the Real World: Helping Clinicians Deliver Skills Training Outside Comprehensive DBT Programs
Presenter: Jesse Finkelstein, PsyD
Dates: Monday, October 5, 2026. 10:00am -1:00pm ET.
Fee: $95. Includes CE credits and 2 months access to recordings.
Venue: Zoom
CE Credits: 2.5
DBT Skills in the Real World – Helping Clinicians Deliver Skills Training Outside Comprehensive DBT Programs with Jesse Finkelstein, PsyD
Description
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) skills training is one of the most broadly applicable and empirically supported components of the DBT model, yet the majority of clinicians who encounter DBT in the wild are not operating within comprehensive, adherent DBT programs. This half-day workshop addresses that gap directly. Participants will explore the evidence base supporting DBT skills as a standalone or adjunctive intervention, examine the theory underlying skills acquisition, strengthening, and generalization, and develop a practical framework for delivering skills training outside the structure of a full program. A central aim of this workshop is to equip clinicians not only with knowledge but with genuine enthusiasm for integrating skills into their existing practice—helping them see skills training not as a lesser version of DBT, but as a powerful, evidence-based tool in its own right.
Topics covered include: the biosocial theory and its relevance to skills training across diagnostic presentations; an overview of DBT’s four skill modules (Mindfulness, Distress Tolerance, Emotion Regulation, and Interpersonal Effectiveness) and how to prioritize skill selection for individual clients; common barriers to skills delivery and how to address them; strategies for teaching, coaching, and reinforcing skill use within individual therapy, group formats, and psychoeducational contexts; and adapting DBT skills for specific populations, including adolescents and clients with complex presentations. Throughout, the workshop emphasizes both the “why” and the “how”—building motivation alongside practical competency.
Instructors
Jesse Finkelstein, PsyD, is a licensed psychologist in New York City and the founder of Axis Psychological Services (axiscbt.com), a private practice specializing in evidence-based treatment of adults with anxiety, mood, and personality disorders. He trained in Dialectical Behavior Therapy under Dr. Shireen Rizvi at the DBT clinic at Rutgers University, completed his pre-doctoral internship at Montefiore Medical Center, and held a post-doctoral fellowship and clinical faculty position at Columbia University Irving Medical Center. Dr. Finkelstein is also co-founder and Chief Content Officer of TheraHive, a platform dedicated to making evidence-based psychological content accessible to general audiences.
Dr. Finkelstein is co-author of Real Skills for Real Life: DBT Skills for Everyday Life (Guilford Press, 2025/2026, with Dr. Shireen Rizvi) and author of The Game of Real Life (Penguin Random House, 2022). He has directed art and content development for multiple DBT dissemination projects, including animated DBT skills videos used in randomized controlled trials and educational materials for DBT-PTSD and GBAT programs. He is a frequent presenter at national conferences on topics at the intersection of clinical practice, dissemination, and technology.
DBT Skills in the Real World – Helping Clinicians Deliver Skills Training Outside Comprehensive DBT Programs with Jesse Finkelstein, PsyD
Objectives
1. Describe the theoretical rationale and empirical support for delivering DBT skills training outside of comprehensive DBT programs, including transdiagnostic applications across clinical populations
2. Identify the core functions of each DBT skill module and apply a framework for selecting and sequencing skills based on case conceptualization and individualized treatment targets
3. Explain the mechanisms of skills acquisition, strengthening, and generalization, and articulate how these mechanisms inform clinical delivery in individual therapy and group-based formats.
4. Demonstrate at least two evidence-based strategies for teaching, coaching, and reinforcing DBT skill use within sessions, and identify approaches for addressing common barriers to skills implementation.
This half-day workshop is designed to build both motivation and practical competency in delivering DBT skills training outside of comprehensive DBT programs. Teaching goals include: (1) increasing clinicians’ confidence in the evidence base supporting skills-only and adjunctive skills delivery; (2) developing clinicians’ ability to conceptualize, select, and sequence skills based on individual client presentations; (3) building practical skill-teaching strategies applicable across individual therapy, group, and psychoeducational formats; and (4) addressing common barriers to skills delivery so clinicians leave with actionable tools rather than theoretical knowledge alone.
CE Information
Continuing Education Credits are granted through Neuhoff Psychological Consulting, PLLC for the following professions: Psychologists, Social workers, Mental Health Counselors, LMFTs, and LCATs. It is the participant’s responsibility to check with their individual state boards to verify CE requirements for their state.
Please Note: Licensing Boards change regulations often, and while we attempt to stay abreast of their most recent changes, if you have questions or concerns about this course meeting your specific board’s approval, we recommend you contact your board directly to obtain a ruling.
APA
Nachas Consulting is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. Neuhoff Psychological Consulting, PLLC maintains responsibility for this program and its content.
ASWB
Neuhoff Psychological Consulting, PLLC, 2035, is approved to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. ACE provider approval period: 08/02/2025 – 08/02/2028 Social workers completing this course receive 2.75 clinical continuing education credits.
NBCC
Neuhoff Psychological Consulting PLLC has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 7503. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. Neuhoff Psychological Consulting, LLC is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.
New York State Social Workers
Neuhoff Psychological Consulting, PLLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department’s State Board for Social Work as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed social workers #SW-0785.
New York State Mental Health Counselors
Neuhoff Psychological Consulting, PLLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department’s State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for Mental Health Counselor #MHC-0195
New York State Psychology
Neuhoff Psychological Consulting, PLLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department’s State Board for Psychology as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed psychologists #PSY-0072.
New York State Marriage Therapy
Neuhoff Psychological Consulting, PLLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department’s State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed marriage and family therapists #MFT-0121.
New York State Creative Arts Therapist
Neuhoff Psychological Consulting, PLLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department’s State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed creative arts therapists. #CAT-0112.
References
Swales, M., & Dunkley, C. (2020). Principles of skills assessment in dialectical behavior therapy. Cognitive and Behavioral Practice, 27(1), 18–29.
Lee, R. K., Harms, C. A., & Jeffery, S. E. (2022). The contribution of skills to the effectiveness of dialectical behavioural therapy. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 78, 2396–2409. https://doi.org/10.1002/jclp.23349
Heath, N., Midkiff, M. F., Gerhart, J., & Turow, R. G. (2021). Group-based DBT skills training modules are linked to independent and additive improvements in emotion regulation in a heterogeneous outpatient sample. Psychotherapy Research, 31(8), 1001–1011. https://doi.org/10.1080/10503307.2021.1878306
Rizvi, S. L., Bitran, A. M., Oshin, L. A., Yin, Q., & Ruork, A. K. (2024). The state of the science: Dialectical behavior therapy. Behavior Therapy, 55(6), 1233–1248.
Rizvi, S. L., Finkelstein, J., Wacha-Montes, A., Yeager, A. L., Ruork, A. K., Yin, Q., et al. (2022). Randomized clinical trial of a brief, scalable intervention for mental health sequelae in college students during the COVID-19 pandemic. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 149, 104015.
Linehan, M. M. (2015). DBT Skills Training Manual (2nd ed.). Guilford Press.
Wergeland, G.J.H., Riise, E.N., & Ost, L-G. (2021). Cognitive behavioral therapy for internalizing disorders in children and adolescents in routine care: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Clinical Psychology Review, 83, 101918
Riise, E. N., Wergeland, G.J.H., Njardvik, U., & Ost, L-G. (2021). Cognitive behavior therapy for externalizing disorders in children and adolescents in routine care: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Clinical Psychology Review, 83, 101954.
Friedberg, R. D., Thordarson, M. A., & Rozmid, E. V. (2025). The 6 Steps to Catalyze CBT and DBT With Young Patients. Psychiatric Times, 42,11-12.
Korte, C. & Friedberg, R.D. (2026). Case conceptualization in CBT: Clinical maps to help practitioners and patients find their way. In Friedberg, R.D., & Thordarson, M.A. (Eds). CBT with youth: Tradition and innovation (pp. 21-36) (2nd Ed). Springer Neuro.
Okamoto, N., & Kazantzis, N. (2021). Alliance ruptures in cognitive-behavioral therapy: A cognitive conceptualization. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 77, 384-397.
Satisfactory Completion:
Participants must have signed in and out, attended the entire workshop to receive a certificate. Failure to sign/log in or out will result in forfeiture of credit for the entire course. No exceptions will be made. Partial credit is not available. Certificates are available electronically after satisfactory course completion. A link will be provided for those who have completed the training.
DBT Skills in the Real World – Helping Clinicians Deliver Skills Training Outside Comprehensive DBT Programs with Jesse Finkelstein, PsyD
Policies
Application Deadline: October 3, 2026 or until all training spaces are filled, whichever comes first.
Notification of Acceptance
Applicants will be notified, via email, of acceptance when registration is complete, and payment is received.
Refund/Cancellation Policy
Tuition/registration payments are refundable until September 5, 2026. Cancellations after this date are non-refundable. In this situation, we will attempt to find someone to take your slot (based on our waiting list).
Accessibility
There will be handicap accessibility.
Course level
Level of clinician
Our Grievance Policy for trainings is available here.
DBT Skills in the Real World – Helping Clinicians Deliver Skills Training Outside Comprehensive DBT Programs with Jesse Finkelstein, PsyD
Schedule
| Monday, October 5, 2026. 10:00am -1:00pm ET. | 10:00am–10:15am — Welcome and Introductions Presenter background; overview of workshop goals and agenda. 10:15am–10:45am — Why DBT Skills? The Case for Skills-Only Delivery Review of the evidence base for DBT skills as standalone and adjunctive interventions. Discussion of the biosocial theory and transdiagnostic applications. Address common clinician misconceptions about DBT “lite.” 10:45am–11:15am — The Four Modules: What They Are and How to Prioritize Overview of Mindfulness, Distress Tolerance, Emotion Regulation, and Interpersonal Effectiveness. Framework for skill selection based on case conceptualization and treatment targets. 11:15am–11:30am — Break 11:30am–12:00pm — How Skills Are Learned: Acquisition, Strengthening, and Generalization Theory and practice of skill teaching. Strategies for reinforcing skill use between sessions. Role of the therapeutic relationship in skills training. 12:00pm–12:30pm — Practical Delivery: Individual Therapy, Psychoeducation, and Group Formats Hands-on strategies for introducing and coaching skills. Live demonstration and participant practice. Adapting delivery for adolescents and complex presentations. 12:30pm–12:45pm — Barriers, Troubleshooting, and Q&A Common obstacles to skills delivery and how to address them. Discussion of real clinical scenarios from participants. 12:45pm–1:00pm — Wrap-Up and Evaluation Summary of key takeaways; resource recommendations; CE evaluation completion. |
DBT Skills in the Real World – Helping Clinicians Deliver Skills Training Outside Comprehensive DBT Programs with Jesse Finkelstein, PsyD
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