Professor Chris Williams is Professor of Psychosocial Psychiatry and Honorary Consultant Psychiatrist at the University of Glasgow, Scotland, UK. His main clinical and research interest is in the area of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and in particular in looking at ways of disseminating this approach more widely. He has developed written and computer-based self-help treatments for anxiety, depression and bulimia and is a well-known CBT researcher, trainer and teacher. He is a Past-President of the British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies - the lead body for CBT in the United Kingdom (www.BABCP.com) and also a past Governing Board member of the United Kingdom for Psychotherapy (UKCP). He is Director of Glasgow Institute of Psychosocial Interventions (GIPSI) - which has a focus on training and research in evidence-based psychosocial interventions. He is also a Patron of the charity Triumph over Phobia - a user-led self-help organisation addressing self-management of anxiety (www.triumphoverphobia.com) and also of the Anxiety UK - the anxiety disorders charity (www.anxietyuk.org.uk

He has published a number of self-help packages addressing depression, bulimia and anxiety - details of which are available at www.calipso.co.uk

He has written and supports the popular www.livinglifetothefull.com website.  Living Life to the Full has been identified as one of the top 4 mental health portals by the Times newspaper and has been recognised by the British Association for Counselling in it's annual awards in the Excellence in the Practice of Counselling and Psychotherapy category.  http://www.babcp.co.uk/news/index.php?newsId=742&count=1&start=0&filter=&cat=20&year=

Research interests focus on Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) and in particular in looking at ways of disseminating this approach more widely to non-CBT specialists. This has included the development and evaluation of a jargon-free CBT model (the so-called five areas approach) and linked training courses (SPIRIT (Structured Psychosocial InteRventions In Teams) project in secondary care and the START project (Self-help training access resource team) in primary care. Currently a £1 million roll-out of the five areas approach is occurring in three Health Board areas of Scotland (Highland, Lanarkshire and Dumfries and Galloway - as well as through Depression Alliance Scotland - DAS).  This WISH (Widening access to Self-Help) project is funded by the Scottish Government Health Department. 

His main focus is on the evaluation of a series of written (Overcoming Depression and Overcoming Anxiety) and computerised (Overcoming Depression and Overcoming Bulimia) self-help packages for use by patients experiencing common mental health disorders. This includes funded randomised controlled trials of written and online Cognitive Behaviour Therapy self-help materials with funding from CSO, MRC and a current large HTA funded project examining CBT for treatment resistant depression in primary care.  A significant move into public and community health delivery are being evaluated and current randomised controlled evaluations of the effectiveness of the Living Life to the Full, Overcoming anorexia and Overcoming bulimia websites.

His clinical work has focused on the local delivery of CBT self-help materials including running the University accredited SPIRIT training course in the use of CBT self-help materials, and the Living Life to the Full College course and website www.livinglifetothefull.com - which has averaged over a million "hits" a month and is recommended by various bodies.

He has a close interest in teaching and training and organises the delivery of examinations for the Undergraduate Psychiatry course.

Publications
Recent grants and current projects