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- Evidence of effectiveness::

§  Meta-analysis (Smith et al., 1975) found an effect size of .85 i.e. those receiving therapy fare better than 85% of those who do not receive therapy

§  Other studies support this finding, but show that it depends on the type of therapy and the therapist, and that the gains are not always maintained

§  Effectiveness of psychoanalysis is difficult to assess due to treatment length. Brief psychodynamic therapy has been found to be as effective as CBT (Barkham et al., 1996)

§  Meta-analysis showed CBT more effective than medication for depression (Gloaguen et al., 1998)

§  Therapy as effective as drugs in short-term and more so in long-term

§  Short-term success of CBT is 50% i.e. 50 out of 100 people will have lost psychiatric symptoms that they would not have lost otherwise

§  Relapse greater for depression than anxiety

§  Course of CBT likely to produce a 1 year extra free of depression