Methodological Background of Decision Rules and Feedback Tools for Outcomes Management in Psychotherapy

Authors

Wolfgang Lutz, University of Trier
Niklaus Stulz, Psychiatric Services Aargau
Zoran Martinovich, Northwestern UniversityFollow
Scott Leon, Loyola University Chicago
Stephen M. Saunders, Marquette UniversityFollow

Document Type

Article

Language

eng

Publication Date

2009

Publisher

Taylor & Francis

Source Publication

Psychotherapy Research

Source ISSN

1050-3307

Abstract

Systems to provide feedback regarding treatment progress have been recognized as a promising method for the early identification of patients at risk for treatment failure in outpatient psychotherapy. The feedback systems presented in this article rely on decision rules to contrast the actual treatment progress of an individual patient and his or her expected treatment response (ETR). Approaches to predict the ETR on the basis of patient intake characteristics and previous treatment progress can be classified into two broad classes: Rationally derived decision rules rely on the judgments of experts, who determine the amount of progress that a patient has to achieve for a given treatment session to be considered “on track.” Empirically derived decision rules are based on expected recovery curves derived from statistical models applied to aggregated psychotherapy outcomes data. Examples of each type of decision rule and of feedback systems based on such rules are presented and reviewed.

Comments

Accepted version. Psychotherapy Research, Vol. 19, No. 4-5 (2009): 502-510. DOI. © 2009 Society for Psychotherapy Research. Used with permission.

Recommended Citation

Lutz, Wolfgang; Stulz, Niklaus; Martinovich, Zoran; Leon, Scott; and Saunders, Stephen M., "Methodological Background of Decision Rules and Feedback Tools for Outcomes Management in Psychotherapy" (2009). Psychology Faculty Research and Publications. 298.
https://epublications.marquette.edu/psych_fac/298