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What patients want from counseling and psychotherapy
Author(s) -
Saccuzzo Dennis P.
Publication year - 1975
Publication title -
journal of clinical psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.124
H-Index - 119
eISSN - 1097-4679
pISSN - 0021-9762
DOI - 10.1002/1097-4679(197507)31:3<471::aid-jclp2270310324>3.0.co;2-p
Subject(s) - catharsis , psychology , psychotherapist , clinical psychology , psychoanalysis
In order to determine why individuals apply for help to a university counseling center, a parallel-response questionnaire was administered to the patients and therapists of the Kent State University psychological clinic immediately after each intake interview. Analysis focused on the frequency, structure, and patient-therapist agreement of reported wants. Eight of the 14 surveyed wants were endorsed by over 80% of the 57 patients surveyed. The items most frequently endorsed by patients were: "Get help in talking about what is really troubling me" (95%) and "Have someone respond to me on a person-to person basis" (91%). Although patients exceed therapists in the frequency of endorsement of nearly all of the items, both were in high agreement about the underlying dimensions of patient wants. Three major themes predominated for both the patients and therapist samples: Self-exploration, Catharsis, and Encouragement. The results underscore the importance of clarifying patient wants in the initial interview.