Psychotherapy process research: progress, dilemmas, and future directions.
The first several decades of psychotherapy process research have produced advances in measure development and substantive findings of process-outcome relations. A recent paradigm shift toward sequentially patterned, significant change episodes is described, emphasizing segmentation of process by meaningful patterns wherever they occur. Theoretical, psychometric, and data analytic dilemma are reviewed. Strategies are offered that may enhance future research efforts. These include greater attention to construct validity of measures, the relation of process to phase-specific outcome criteria, and the continuing development of multivariate data analytic strategies that take into account Patient X Treatment interactions as well as the sequential dependency of process data. The development of a national archive of significant change events is recommended to advance modeling of the change process, segmentation, construct validation of measures, integration of qualitative and quantitative approaches, and development of a cross-theoretical language for therapy process.
Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Francisco.
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D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005544:Forecasting; D006801:Humans; D010553:Personality Development; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D011613:Psychotherapy / Q000379:methods*; D012106:Research