title: The therapist, the client, and the real relationship: an actor-partner interdependence analysis of treatment outcome.
abstract: The relationship between treatment progress (as rated by both clients and therapists) and real relationship (also rated by both clients and therapists) was decomposed into between-therapist and within-therapist (between-client) effects and analyzed using the actor-partner interdependence model. We reanalyzed a subset of the data, 12 therapists and 32 clients, from Gelso et al.'s (2012) study of brief, theoretically diverse outpatient treatment. Consistent with and extending previous research, clients whose therapists provided higher average levels of client-perceived real relationship across the clients treated by a given therapist had better progress ratings from both themselves and their therapists. Within each therapist's caseload, differences between clients in client- or therapist-rated real relationship were unrelated to either client- or therapist-rated outcome. Clients whose therapists provided higher average levels of therapist-perceived real relationship, across the clients treated by the therapist, had worse progress ratings from the therapists. The results provide additional evidence for the importance of between-therapist differences in therapeutic relationship qualities, both client and therapist rated.
authors.affiliation: Department of Counseling, Higher Education and Special Education.
authors.forename: Dennis M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Kivlighan
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Maryland.
authors.forename: Charles J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Gelso
authors.affiliation: University Counseling Center, George Washington University.
authors.forename: Stacie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ain
authors.affiliation: Naval Base San Diego.
authors.forename: Ann M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Hummel
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Villanova University.
authors.forename: Rayna D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Markin
mesh_terms: D005260:Female; D006282:Health Personnel; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008960:Models, Psychological; D010465:Perception; D011369:Professional-Patient Relations; D016896:Treatment Outcome