American Psychologist · 1977 · 127 citations · 0 references
EducationBehavioral SciencesPsychologyCounseling PsychologyMeta-analysisPsychotherapyBehavior TherapyBrief PsychotherapyCognitive Behavioral TherapyPsychodynamic PsychotherapyPsychotherapy AssessmentTreatment Of Mental DisordersMeta-analysis Of Treatment EffectsPooled Treatment EffectPsychotherapy Outcome Measurement
The study synthesized data from almost 400 controlled psychotherapy trials using statistical integration. Psychotherapy is effective, with typical clients improving beyond 75 % of untreated individuals, and no significant differences in efficacy were found among diverse therapy types.
Results of nearly 400 controlled evalua- tions of psychotherapy and counseling were coded and integrated statistically. The findings provide convincing evidence of the efficacy of psychotherapy. On the average, the typical therapy client is better off than 75% of untreated individuals. Few important differ- ences in effectiveness could be established among many quite different types of psychotherapy . More generally, virtually no difference in effectiveness was observed be- tween the class of all behavioral therapies (systematic desensitization, behavior modification) and the nonbe- havioral therapies (Rogerian, psychodynamic, rational- emotive, transactional analysis, etc.).