During the last decade the amount of funding for therapies has been increasingly linked with the "Evidence Based" components of various types of therapy. There is now evidence that the following elements increase the effectivness of therapy:



- Goal consensus and collaboration

- Cohesion in Group Therapy

- The Therapeutic alliance

- Empathy



Other elements currently being investigated and looking promosing:

- Management of countertransference

- Feedback

- Positive regard

- Congruence

- Self-disclosure

- Relational Interpretations

- Repair of alliance ruptures



How can we summarize the above and inform clients better when they are about to make a decision about where to go for therapy or when they want to evaluate their progress with their current therapist?



The above seems to indicate that therapies tend to be less effective when your therapist doenst invite you to become actively engaged in Therapy. This means for example that Homework assignments will allow clients to make more progress than those clients who limit their efforts to the once a week session with their Counsellor.



From the above we can also deduct that when you have a good bond with your therapist you are more likely to achieve more progress.  This is onviously linked with the Empathy element.



Overall we can say that motivation plays a decisive role when it comes to defining the elements that influence Therapeutic progress. "Being send" to see a therapist is obviously less of a good starting point than go "shopping" and selecting the therapist you feel most comfortable with. This is why I sometimes ask people who phone me on behalf of there partner, if it is at all possible to let their partner call me. Experience tells me that when Clients dont call themselves to make the first appointment, normally therapeutic progress is slow and sessions tend to end premature.



Clients who choose to ehter therapy themselves are more willing to adopt the client role; have higher expectations of therapeutic outcomes; believe that psychological treatment will be of help to them and have realistic expectations about what will happen intherapy.



Source: Therapy Today / September 2008 / The facts are friendly

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