Background In this study, we aimed to assess the degree to which individuals with varying levels of psychotherapeutic experience have predisposed ideas regarding what works in psychotherapy. Method Therapists (n = 107), patients (n = 97), and lay individuals with no prior experience in psychotherapy (n = 160) reported their process expectations and ranked seven mechanisms of change in the order of their perceived importance. Results Therapists rated emotional processing and patient–therapist relations as higher in importance than did patients and lay individuals, but patients and lay individuals rated cognitive and emotional reconstruction higher than did therapists. Furthermore, therapists ranked the exploration of unconscious contents as most important, while patients and lay individuals ranked cognitive control to be the most important mechanism of change. Conclusions Therapists, patients, and lay individuals expect different mechanisms of change to take place in psychotherapy. Limitations and directions for future research are discussed.
The question of what works in psychotherapy has been a subject of debate in the recent years, occupying both clinicians and researchers. In this study, we aimed to assess the current perspectives held by clinicians regarding the processes which produce changes in psychotherapy, as well as the predictors of specific views. Licensed therapists (n = 107), consisting mainly of psychodynamically and integratively oriented psychologists, were asked to write in their own words what they think works in psychotherapy. Thematic analysis was employed to assess the main mechanisms of change as perceived by the therapists. Differences in the prevalence of specific themes were assessed using Friedman and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests. Univariate logistic regressions were employed to assess the factors that predict the probability of reporting a specific mechanism of change. The results indicated that the therapeutic bond was the most highly reported mechanism of change, followed by theory-driven mechanisms of change, therapist characteristics, therapist professionalism, and client motivation. Male therapists were more likely to indicate the professionalism as a mechanism of change compared to female therapists. Higher education was associated with lower reports of therapists’ characteristics as the mechanisms of change. These results suggest that therapists acknowledge the importance of the working alliance, and that the perception of the mechanism of change is associated with various factors which comprise therapist orientation. Limitations and directions for future research are discussed.
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