Premium
Session impact and outcome in stress management training
Author(s) -
Reynolds Shirley,
Taylor Emma,
Shapiro David
Publication year - 1993
Publication title -
journal of community and applied social psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.042
H-Index - 63
eISSN - 1099-1298
pISSN - 1052-9284
DOI - 10.1002/casp.2450030409
Subject(s) - psychological intervention , distress , psychology , task (project management) , session (web analytics) , stress management , applied psychology , clinical psychology , job satisfaction , interpersonal communication , social psychology , computer science , psychiatry , management , world wide web , economics
The evaluation of stress management training (SMT) programmes suggest that benefits to participants may be due to non‐specific factors and not to the technical components of SMT. The current study employed a method of psychotherapy process research to assess the extent to which task, i.e. technique driven, impacts and non‐specific impacts are related to outcome. Sixty‐two female health service workers participated in six standardized sessions of SMT, each of which contained specific techniques. After training participants reported significantly lower levels of psychological distress but no changes in job or non‐job satisfaction. Specific task impacts, such as insight and problem definition, and non‐specific impacts, support, relief and involvement were significantly related to non‐job satisfaction one month after training. In addition, the slope of interpersonal impacts (support and relief) was associated with less psychological distress at one‐ and three‐month follow‐up. Process research methods appear to be a promising way of maximizing the benefits attributed to SMT and developing more effective interventions.