Patients’ perceptions of treatment credibility and their relation to the outcome of group CBT for depression

The construct of credibility and its relevance to therapeutic process and outcome of psychotherapy have been espoused in the literature for many years [1–3]. Credibility refers to the extent to which patients believe that the specific therapy they are to receive sounds logical, seems likely to be helpful, and is an intervention they would recommend to a friend [4]. Some researchers have argued that patients’ prognostic beliefs about the consequences of engaging in treatment depend, in part, upon how credible the therapy seems [5]. Others have implicated credibility as a crucial factor in shaping patients’ experiences of treatment [6]. Strong’s [7] Ingrid Söchting1, Michelle Tsai2, John S. Ogrodniczuk3: 1Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, 2Surrey Mental Health & Substance Use Services, Fraser Health Authority, 3Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia Correspondence address: isochting@psych.ubc.ca