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Outcome Evaluation of Therapeutic Effectiveness
Author(s) -
Nicholson Susan
Publication year - 1989
Publication title -
australian and new zealand journal of family therapy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.297
H-Index - 19
eISSN - 1467-8438
pISSN - 0814-723X
DOI - 10.1002/j.1467-8438.1989.tb00745.x
Subject(s) - officer , service (business) , outcome (game theory) , psychology , family therapy , therapeutic relationship , project commissioning , psychotherapist , medicine , publishing , political science , business , marketing , mathematics , mathematical economics , law
Evaluation need not be a boring exercise, carried out under sufferance simply to please the demands of administration. Nor need it be so complicated that a research officer is required to undertake it. This article reports on an evaluation of therapeutic outcomes conducted by the Manly Warringah Adolescent Service. Apart from offering general evidence of therapeutic effectiveness, an evaluation of this kind has the potential for answering some of the more interesting questions posed by clinicians. It was discovered, for example, that there was a significant, positive association between the therapist's assessment of problem resolution at termination of therapy, and client's independent assessment made three months later. Support was also found for the practice of involving the family in therapy, with such an approach offering favourable results in fewer sessions and carrying with it the additional benefits of improved family relationships.