Psychological Therapies 2 - CBT AO2 Flashcards
What about the effectiveness of CBT (research support)?
Is research evidence conclusive?
Meta-analysis by Robinson et al. (1990) found that CBT was superior to no -treatment control groups.
However, when these control groups were subdivided into waiting list (i.e. no treatment at all) and placebo groups, CBT was not significantly more effective than the placebo condition at reducing depressive symptoms.
What research has supported the claim that therapist competence appears to explain a significant amount of the variation in CBT outcomes?
(also regarding effectiveness of CBT)
Kuyken and Tsivrikos (2009) concluded that as much as 15% of the variation in outcome may be attributable to therapist competence.
What about the effectiveness of CBT including the importance of homework?
Research suggests that clients’ engagement with ‘homework’ predicts their outcomes and that therapists who are able to improve clients’ engagement with homework have associated benefits in terms of outcomes (Bryant et al, 1999).
In terms of its appropriateness, who is CBT suitable for?
CBT has been successfully applied to many different client groups, including elderly populations, juveniles and depressed adolescents.
The cognitive aspect of CBT has also been administered by computer and shown to be as effective as other forms of psychotherapy treatment (Selmi et al, 1990). A particular advantage of computer-based and phone-based psychotherapy, is the relatively low level of drop-out compared to face-to-face CBT.
Who isn’t CBT suitable for?
CBT appears to be less suitable for people who have high levels of dysfunctional beliefs that are both rigid and resistant to change (Elkin et al, 1985).
CBT also appears to be less suitable in situations where high levels of stress in the individual reflect realistic stressors in the person’s life that therapy cannot resolve (Simons et al, 1995).
