Comparative effects of cognitive-behavioral and brief psychodynamic psychotherapies for depressed family caregivers.
Clinically depressed family caregivers (N = 66) of frail, elderly relatives were randomly assigned to 20 sessions of either cognitive-behavioral (CB) or brief psychodynamic (PD) individual psychotherapy. At posttreatment, 71% of the caregivers were no longer clinically depressed according to research diagnostic criteria (RDC), with no differences found between the 2 outpatient treatments. The results suggested therapy specificity; there was an interaction between treatment modality and length of caregiving on symptom-oriented measures. Clients who had been caregivers for a shorter period showed improvement in the PD condition, whereas those who had been caregivers for at least 44 months improved with CB therapy. These findings suggest that patient-specific variables should be considered when choosing treatment for clinically depressed family caregivers.
Gallagher-Thompson
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Older Adult and Family Center, Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Palo Alto, California 94304.
Steffen
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AM
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D017028:Caregivers / Q000523:psychology*; D015928:Cognitive Behavioral Therapy; D017281:Cost of Illness; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D016330:Frail Elderly / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011575:Psychoanalytic Therapy; D011614:Psychotherapy, Brief; D016896:Treatment Outcome