Therapist characteristics that predict the outcome of multipatient psychotherapy: Systematic review of empirical studies

Sánchez-Bahíllo, Angel; Aragón‐Alonso, Aurora; Sánchez-Bahíllo, María; Birtle, Jan

doi:10.1016/j.jpsychires.2014.01.016

Cited by 16 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 56 publications

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“…However, studies analyzing these variables are scarce, and most of them present important methodological limitations (all but one were rated as having a considerable risk of bias), which means that these should be viewed as preliminary results. This follows a tendency already identified in other reviews, where studies addressing the impact of personal therapist characteristics are inconclusive and of poor methodological quality (Beutler et al, 2004; Sánchez‐Bahillo, Aragón‐Alonso, Sánchez‐Bahíllo & Birtle, 2014).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 63%

Therapist Factors Matter: A Systematic Review of Parent Interventions Directed at Children’s Behavior Problems

2020

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The present review systematically explored research examining the relationship between therapist‐related factors and the outcomes of parent interventions directed at children’s behavior problems. A systematic search of the literature was conducted with online scientific databases, parenting programs, web sites, and bibliographic references of the selected articles, according to PRISMA guidelines. A total of 24 quantitative studies met the inclusion criteria. Although some methodological limitations were identified with respect to the measurement of therapist factors, the reviewed research strongly suggests that the therapist plays a critical role in parent interventions directed at behavior problems. In particular, many parent outcomes are found to be related to the parent–therapist alliance, the therapist’s fidelity to the intervention, specific therapist’s in‐session actions, and the therapist’s personal variables. The parent–therapist alliance and therapist fidelity to the intervention consistently relate to changes in parenting practices, and alliance additionally relates to fewer perceived barriers to participation in treatment, more treatment acceptability, and greater parenting satisfaction and self‐efficacy. In addition, specific in‐session therapist interpersonal actions relate to parents’ engagement and satisfaction, while both the therapist’s interpersonal actions and more active skills relate to parent change. Therapist’s personal variables have been scarcely or poorly studied to date, but the results found justify the need to develop further research in this area. In conclusion, more attention should be given to the role of the therapist when implementing parenting programs directed at behavior problems, and more and better research is needed that can overcome the methodological limitations identified.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 63%

Therapist Factors Matter: A Systematic Review of Parent Interventions Directed at Children’s Behavior Problems

2020

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“… 36 These findings highlight an important caveat to the use of bibliotherapy that bibliotherapy is not suitable for some people who lack cognitive capacity and self-discipline. 33 Patients using psychotherapy often expect guidance and advice from experts who assume some degree of responsibility and control, which reduces the pressure on the patients, 52 whereas patients with such expectations who are confronted with an independent and active model of therapeutic change may be discouraged. A possible interpretation is that a protocol emphasizing on cognitive changes is more difficult for young people to engage in, especially children.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparative efficacy and acceptability of bibliotherapy for depression and anxiety disorders in children and adolescents: a meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials

Yuan¹,

Zhang²,

Zhang³

et al. 2018

NDT

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*These authors contributed equally to this workBackground: Depression and anxiety are the most common mental disorders in children and adolescents. Bibliotherapy is a treatment using written materials for mental health problems. Its main advantages are ease of use, low cost, low staffing demands, and greater privacy. Yet few meta-analyses have focused on the effect of bibliotherapy on depression and anxiety disorders in children and adolescents. Methods: We included randomized controlled trials comparing bibliotherapy with control conditions for depression and anxiety in children and adolescents (aged #18 years). Five electronic databases (PubMed, Embase, Cochrane, Web of Science, and PsycINFO) were searched from inception to January 2017. Efficacy was defined as mean change scores in depression and anxiety symptoms. Acceptability was defined as the proportion of participants who discontinued the treatment. Random effects model was used. An intention-to-treat analysis was conducted. Results: Eight studies with 979 participants were selected. At posttreatment, bibliotherapy was significantly more effective than the control conditions in reducing the symptoms of depression or anxiety (standardized mean difference, −0.52; 95% confidence interval [CI], −0.89 to −0.15). Bibliotherapy did not have statistically significantly more all-cause discontinuations than controls (risk ratios, 1.66; 95% CI, 0.93 to 2.95). We also performed subgroup analyses for efficacy outcomes in different categories (types of disorder, mean age, control conditions, and parental involvement) of studies and found that bibliotherapy has been more effective in depressive adolescents. Limitations: Limited studies were eligible in this review and hence there was potential publication bias. Conclusion: According to the findings in this review, bibliotherapy may be more beneficial in treating depression in adolescents, but shows less robust effects for anxiety in children. Further well-defined clinical studies should be performed to confirm these outcomes.

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“…This might violate external validity, as couple/family therapy/counseling sessions are often in intervals of 4 to 6 weeks, and the number of sessions is usually dependent on concern and order clarification (Nichols, ). We also included some systemic couple/family counselors and therapists who were still in training, which might be problematic due to their lack of practical experience with systemic techniques, although empirical evidence is less clear about this issue (Sánchez‐Bahíllo, Aragón‐Alonso, Sánchez‐Bahíllo, & Birtle, ). Furthermore, we did not analyze the influence of the length of partnership, although this has been shown to be important for treatment response (Atkins et al., ).…”

Section: Study 2: Experimentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Routine Evaluation (SCORE) assesses the functionality of couple and family relationships by means of three dimensions: strengths and adaptability, overwhelmed by difficulties, and disrupted communication (Hamilton, Carr, Cahill, Cassells, & Hartnett, 2015;Stratton, Bland, Janes, & Lask, 2010). The Systemic Therapy Inventory of Change (STIC; Pinsof et al, 2009) measures change through eight problem-centered metaframeworks, which are specifically relevant in family therapy.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Changing Me, Changing Us: Relationship Quality and Collective Efficacy as Major Outcomes in Systemic Couple Therapy

et al. 2017

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We examine the sensitivity to change in the Evaluation of Social Systems (EVOS) scale, which assesses relationship quality and collective efficacy. In Study 1 we conducted a waitlist-control, short-term couple therapy RCT study (N = 43 couples) with five systemic therapy sessions treating communication and partnership problems; our intent was to provide high external validity. Construct validity of EVOS was assessed by comparison with additionally applied scales (Family Scales; Outcome Questionnaire, OQ-45.2). In Study 2, N = 332 individuals completed an experiment with high internal validity in order to verify sensitivity to change in three different social contexts. Results from Study 1 revealed a significant increase in relationship quality in the treatment group directly after treatment, as compared to the control group. Sensitivity to change was slightly better for EVOS than for other measures. While this positive change could not be fully sustained between posttreatment and a 4-week follow-up, EVOS score did not fall below baseline and pretreatment levels, supporting moderate-to-large sensitivity to change. Study 2 supported high sensitivity to change in EVOS for couple relations, family relations, and work-team relationships. Therefore, EVOS can be used as an outcome measure to monitor the process of systemic interventions focusing on relationship quality and collective efficacy. Due to its sensitivity to change, EVOS can provide evidence for treatment success with regard to relationship aspects.

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Therapist characteristics that predict the outcome of multipatient psychotherapy: Systematic review of empirical studies

Cited by 16 publications

References 56 publications

Therapist Factors Matter: A Systematic Review of Parent Interventions Directed at Children’s Behavior Problems

Therapist Factors Matter: A Systematic Review of Parent Interventions Directed at Children’s Behavior Problems

Comparative efficacy and acceptability of bibliotherapy for depression and anxiety disorders in children and adolescents: a meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials

Changing Me, Changing Us: Relationship Quality and Collective Efficacy as Major Outcomes in Systemic Couple Therapy

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