According to previous research results, the relationship between initial (pretherapy) patient-therapist value similarity and psychotherapy outcome is not clear. In this study, 45 adult outpatients were examined with the intention of clarifying the relationship between patient-therapist value similarity, convergence, patient locus of control, and improvement. As hypothesized, initial similarity was negatively correlated with convergence and convergence was correlated with therapist-rated improvement. Also, when improvement was measured within the realm of specific symptoms, especially symptoms of paranoia and interpersonal sensitivity, additional significant findings were discovered involving the correlation of initial similarity as well as locus of control with improvement. In general, this study suggested the need for evaluating improvement within specific areas of functioning and through the use of several rating sources such as the patient, therapist, and an independent rater(s).

No description available.

Thesis--University of Florida. / Description based on print version record. Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 122-126).

Originally identified by Freud (1912, 1913), the therapeutic or working alliance between client and therapist has in the last decade been proposed as the common factor that could account for psychotherapeutic outcome regardless of the theoretical orientations and/or techniques employed by therapists. Psychotherapy researchers (Allen, Newsom, Gabbard, & Coyne, 1984; Hartley & Strupp, 1983; Horvath, 1981; Luborsky, 1976; Marziali, Marmar, & Krupnick, 1981) have developed various scales for measuring the alliance and have quite consistently demonstrated an alliance-outcome relationship. The Working Alliance Inventory (Horvath, 1981, 1982) is the first self-report instrument developed to measure the alliance construct. It is based on the theory proposed by Bordin (1975, 1979) that the alliance is the product of the synergistic combination of three highly related components -- goal mutuality, agreement regarding relevant tasks and responsibilities, and the development of personal bonds or attachments. In the present study, the Working Alliance Inventory was administered after each of the first five, the tenth, and the final sessions of 44 psychotherapy cases. It was found to be statistically significantly related to outcome by the third to fifth session on four of the six outcome measures employed. Another self-report measure, the Helping Alliance Questionnaire (Luborsky, McLellan, Woody, O'Brian, & Auerbach, 1985) was also administered at the third session, as well as measures of therapist empathy, expertness, attractiveness, and trustworthiness. The Helping Alliance Questionnaire, which is based on a clinically-derived definition of the alliance, was found to be statistically significantly related to outcome on all six of the measures employed. Speculations concerning the differential patterns of results with the two alliance measures are offered. / Education, Faculty of / Educational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department of / Graduate

No description available.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--West Virginia University, 2002. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains ix, 224 p. Vita. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 178-190).

The purpose of this study was to investigate how therapists' use of humor in psychotherapy would affect subjects' ratings of those therapists. Short excerpts illustrating different levels of humor were developed by having four professional therapists view videotapes of actual therapy sessions and rate the therapists on amount of humor used. Interjudge agreement was obtained on six excerpts. These six included two excerpts in which the therapists were judged to have used no humor, two in which the therapists were judged to have used a slight amount of humor and two in which the therapists were judged to have used a moderate amount of humor. These six excerpts were then viewed and rated by 72 subjects on the dimensions of empathy, respect, warmth, genuineness, concreteness and self-disclosure. It was found that significant differences existed between all three humor groups on the condition of respect. The group judged to have used no humor was rated superior to the two groups using humor in amount to respect shown by the therapists to the clients. When the two groups judged to have used humor were compared, the group in which the therapists used more humor was rated significantly lower than the group judged to have used a slight amount of humor. It was concluded that subjects' ratings on the condition of respect decreased as greater amounts of humor were introduced by the therapists. Significant differences were not found between humor groups on the conditions of empathy, warmth, genuineness, concreteness and self-disclosure. However, the pattern observed in the subjects' ratings on the conditions of empathy and warmth suggested that the ratings given to therapists decreased as amount of humor increased. The results on the conditions of genuineness and concreteness were inconclusive. On the condition of self-disclosure, the pattern observed in the ratings suggested that a direct relationship existed between amount of humor and ratings received.

This investigation explored the effects of two independent variables choosing a therapist and pretherapy training (PTT) and their interaction on psychotherapeutic outcome. The subjects were students who applied for counseling services at the University of Arizona's Student Counseling Serivice. Six therapists participated in the study by seeing the subjects who were assigned to them by the investigator for three sessions each. Subjects were assigned to one of six groups: (1) first choice therapy and viewing of pretherapy training videotape, (2) other than first choice therapist and viewing of pretherapy training videotape, (3) no choice therapist (random assignment) and viewing of pretherapy training videotape, (4) first choice therapist and not viewing the pretherapy training videotape, (5) other than first choice therapist and not viewing the pretherapy training videotape and, (6) no choice of therapist (random assignment) and not viewing the pretherapy training videotape. All therapists in the study were videotaped conducting a ten minute intake interview with the same model client. Subjects that were in groups requiring choosing a therapist, groups one, two, four, and five, viewed videotapes of three therapists and made their selection from that subgroup. The pretherapy training videotape was a model counseling session between a model therapist and model client followed by a commentary of the ways in which the client behaved appropriately during the counseling session. The two instruments used were a self-report instrument for the clients, the Brief Symptom Psychiatric Rating Scale (Overall and Aronson, 1962). Pretest measures were taken using the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) prior to treatment and using the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS) after the first session. Post-test measures using both instruments were taken after the 3rd therapy session. ANCOVAs were performed, using the pre-test score as the covariate. No significant effects were found for the choice variable on either the BSI or the BPRS. Significant effects were found for pre-therapy training on the Depressive Mood and Hostility scales of the BPRS although no effect was found for pretherapy training on the BSI. The only significant interaction effect for the two independent variables was found on the Hostility subscale of the BSI.

No description available.

Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Auburn University,2006. / Abstract. Includes bibliographic references (p.69-83).