Therapist's effect on children's therapeutic alliance: A naturalistic study.

OBJECTIVES: The therapeutic alliance (TA) has been shown to be a predictor of psychotherapy treatment success. In the case of psychotherapy with children, there is a dearth of information on TA's role. The aims of the paper are: (1) To estimate the therapist effects on children TA; (2) to investigate if therapists' TA predicts children's TA; (3) to analyze if children's age and sex predict children's TA; (4) to evaluate if the therapist's characteristics predict children's TA. METHODS: The sample consisted of 77 children undergoing psychotherapy in Argentina, and the therapists (N = 29) providing services to those children. The assessment tools utilized for the study included the Therapy Alliance Scale for Children and the Personal Style of the Therapist Questionnaire (PST-Q). RESULTS: Findings indicated that 2% of the children's TA was explained by the therapists (ICC = 0.02), while 17% of the therapists' TA was explained by the therapists (ICC = 0.17). Therapists' TA predicted children's TA. Children's age and sex did not have an effect on their own TA. Moreover, therapists with more experience achieved higher scores of children's TA. Finally, the Operative dimension of the PST had a negative effect on children's TA (i.e., therapists who prefer more spontaneous interventions over structured ones may experience higher levels of therapeutic alliance with child patients). CONCLUSION: We found a positive effect of the therapist's TA on children's TA, especially in the preference for using more spontaneous intervention techniques. We discuss the implications of the findings on the training of psychotherapists who provide services to children.

How Treatment Motivation Predicts Favorable Outcomes in Interdisciplinary Multimodal Pain Treatment Among Patients with Chronic Primary Pain.

As motivation for psychological treatment at intake has been shown to predict favorable outcomes after an inpatient stay, this study aimed to further characterize the different components of psychological treatment motivation that predict favorable treatment outcomes. 294 inpatients with chronic primary pain participating in an interdisciplinary multimodal pain treatment in a tertiary psychosomatic university clinic completed a battery of psychological questionnaires at intake and discharge. Treatment motivation was assessed at intake using the scales of the FPTM-23 questionnaire, while pain intensity, pain interference, anxiety, and depression were assessed both at intake and discharge. After treatment, pain intensity, pain interference, anxiety, and depression were significantly reduced. While higher levels on the FPTM-23 scale of suffering predicted smaller decreases in anxiety after treatment, higher scores on the scale of hope, i.e., lower levels of hopelessness, predicted lower levels of pain interference, anxiety, and depression after treatment. None of the scales of treatment motivation predicted pain intensity levels after treatment. Above and beyond providing symptom relief, reducing hopelessness and fostering hope regarding the treatment process and outcome might help clinicians treat patients with chronic primary pain more effectively.

Implementation of an Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) in Naturalistic Psychotherapy Settings: Qualitative Insights from Patients, Therapists, and Supervisors Perspectives.

Ecological momentary assessment (EMA) allows measuring intra-individual processes moment by moment, identifying and modeling, in a naturalistic way, individual levels and changes in different psychological processes. However, active EMA requires a high degree of adherence, as it implies a significant burden for patients. Moreover, there is still no consensus on standardized procedures for implementation. There have been few results in detecting desirable characteristics for the design and implementation of an EMA device. Studies that address these issues from the perspectives of participants in psychotherapeutic processes are needed. To analyze the perspectives of patients, therapists and supervisors on the implementation of an EMA device in a psychotherapeutic treatment for depression. The sample will include eight patients, eleven therapists and five supervisors, taken from a research project that implemented an EMA system for monitoring the dynamics of affectivity at the beginning of psychotherapies for depression. Semi-structured interviews specific to each group are being conducted and analyzed from a qualitative approach based on consensual qualitative research (CQR). Participants reported having a positive evaluation of the study's informational resources and implementation. Difficulties were expressed in responding in the morning hours and the importance of having a customized EMA that is tailored to the needs of the patients was expressed. Furthermore, patients and therapists agreed that the impact of the use of the monitoring system on treatment was neutral or positive. In contrast, patients considered the EMA to be positive for their daily life.

Diagnosis and case formulation in psychodynamic therapy: a review of current tools / Diagnóstico y formulación de casos en terapia psicodinámica: una revisión sobre herramientas actuales.

In the last two decades, several working groups in the international psychoanalytic community have been interested in the development of systematic tools for psychodynamic diagnosis, case formulation and treatment planning. Such psychodynamic diagnostic manuals are efforts to systematically integrate an enormous and rich amount of historically partialized and dispersed information, but which constitute the substantial contribution of psychoanalysis to the field of mental health. The aim of the present article is to provide an updated review on this kind of systematic tools for diagnosis, case formulation and therapeutic planning, designed for the field of psychodynamic approaches. To this end, we describe the aims and structure of: 1) the Psychodynamic Diagnostic Manual 2 (PDM-2), 2) the Operationalized Psychodynamic Diagnosis (OPD-2/OPD-3) and 3) the Operationalized Psychodynamic Diagnosis for Children and adolescents 2 (OPD-CA-2). The contributions of these current tools to clinical practice and empirical research are discussed, as well as the need to disseminate these types of instruments in our regional context.

En las últimas dos décadas, diversos grupos de trabajo de la comunidad psicoanalítica internacional se han interesado por el desarrollo de herramientas sistemáticas para el diagnóstico, la formulación de los casos y la planificación del tratamiento psicodinámico. Este tipo de manuales diagnósticos psicodinámicos son esfuerzos de integración sistemática de una enorme y rica cantidad de información históricamente parcializada y dispersa, pero que constituye el aporte sustancial del psicoanálisis al campo de la salud mental. El objetivo del presente artículo es ofrecer una revisión actualizada sobre esta clase de herramientas sistemáticas de diagnóstico, formulación del caso y planificación terapéutica, diseñadas para el campo de los abordajes psicodinámicos. A estos fines, se describe la estructura y los objetivos de: 1) el Manual Diagnóstico Psicodinámico 2 (PDM-2), 2) el Diagnóstico Psicodinámico Operacionalizado (OPD-2/OPD-3) y 3) el Diagnóstico Psicodinámico Operacionalizado Infanto-Juvenil 2 (OPD-IJ-2).Se discuten las contribuciones de estas herramientas actuales para la práctica clínica y la investigación empírica, así como la necesidad de difundir este tipo de instrumentos en nuestro contexto regional.

Alliance negotiation as a predictor of early treatment outcome.

AIM: The therapeutic alliance is a robust predictor of treatment outcome. However, little is known about the way alliance negotiation contributes to psychotherapy outcome. The aim of the present study was to analyze the effects of alliance negotiation on treatment outcome in the first four sessions of psychotherapy. METHODS: Ninety-six patients diagnosed with emotional disorders received weekly Solution-Focused Brief Therapy. Each patient completed both the Alliance Negotiation Scale (ANS) and the Outcome Questionnaire 45 (OQ.45) after each of the first four sessions. Both between- and within-patients effects of alliance negotiation on symptom severity were analyzed using Hierarchical Linear Models. RESULTS: Results showed significant between and within patient effects of alliance negotiation on symptom severity. Patients with higher levels of alliance negotiation across treatment showed lower levels of symptom severity (between-patient effect). Also, in a session with higher alliance negotiation compared to the average session of this patient, symptom severity was lower than in the average session (within-patient effect). DISCUSSION: The results indicate that therapies characterized by higher alliance negotiation and sessions with higher alliance negotiation are beneficial for early outcome. CONCLUSION: From a clinical point of view, the results suggest that alliance negotiation is a meaningful factor for therapy outcome and that therapists may benefit from training and monitoring alliance negotiation during the early stages of treatment.

The impact of integrating emotion focused components into psychological therapy: A randomized controlled trial.

OBJECTIVES: This paper presents a randomized controlled trial on assimilative integration, which is aimed at integrating elements from other orientations within one approach to enrich its conceptual and practical repertoire. Elements from Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT) were integrated into a form of cognitive behavior therapy: Psychological Therapy (PT). In one treatment condition, EFT was added to PT (+EFT) with the intent to enhance therapists' working with emotions. In the other condition, concepts and interventions based on the socialpsychological self-regulation approach were added to PT (+SR). Our assumption was that the +EFT would lead to greater and deeper change, particularly in the follow-up assessments. METHOD: Patients (n = 104) with anxiety, depression, or adjustment disorders were randomized to the two conditions and treated by 38 therapists who self-selected between the conditions. Primary outcome was symptom severity at 12-month follow-up; secondary outcomes included several measures such as interpersonal problems and quality of life. Variables were assessed at baseline, after 8 and 16 sessions, at posttreatment, and at 6- and 12-month follow-up. RESULTS: Contrary to our hypothesis, no significant between-group effects were found. CONCLUSION: The findings first suggest the difficulty of topping an already very effective approach to psychotherapy. Alternative interpretations were that the EFT training, while corresponding to regular practice in AI, was not sufficient to make a difference in outcome, or that while profiting from the enhancement of abilities for working with emotions, this was outbalanced by negative effects of difficulties related to the implementation of the new elements.

Motive Satisfaction Among Patients with Chronic Primary Pain: A Replication.

We set out to replicate findings of significant (a) reductions in pain, psychological distress, and motivational incongruence (i.e., insufficient motive satisfaction) after interdisciplinary multimodal pain treatment and (b) associations between reductions in motivational incongruence (i.e., improved motive satisfaction) and decreases in psychological distress (Vincent et al., Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings 28:331-343, 2021). 475 Patients with chronic primary pain completed standardized self-reported questionnaires assessing motivational incongruence, psychological distress, pain intensity, and pain interference at intake and discharge from a tertiary psychosomatic university clinic. We used hierarchical linear models to analyze motivational incongruence's effects on psychological distress. We partially replicated Vincent et al.'s findings. Significant reductions in pain, psychological distress, and motivational incongruence after treatment were found. Reductions in motivational incongruence were associated with reductions in psychological distress. Similarly, a better motive satisfaction mediated the relationship between pain interference and psychological distress. Our findings show that reducing motivational incongruence may be a key component of treating chronic primary pain; we recommend to assess and target motivational incongruence to improve interdisciplinary multimodal pain treatment.

Change processes in psychotherapy for patients presenting with histrionic personality disorder.

OBJECTIVE: Histrionic personality disorder (HPD) with a lifetime prevalence rate of 1.8% is an under-researched psychiatric diagnosis. The present study therefore aimed to investigate both the processes and outcomes of psychotherapy for HPD in a non-controlled study. METHODS: A total of 159 patients diagnosed with HPD were recruited and received clarification-oriented psychotherapy. Sessions 15, 20, and 25 were video-recorded and analysed using the Process-Content-Relationship Scale. Therapy outcome was assessed with symptom measures at intake and discharge. Hierarchical linear modelling was applied to estimate the changes in the psychotherapeutic outcome and associations with patient and therapist process developments. RESULTS: Improvements in relationship processes of patients and therapists were systematically related to outcome while only partial relationships were found on the levels of process and content. CONCLUSION: The present study represents the first systematic insight into core changes in patients with HPD undergoing psychotherapy.

Therapists' perceptions of interpersonally challenging patients in generalized anxiety disorder.

OBJECTIVE: This study explores in cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) to what degree therapists' perceptions of their patients as interpersonally challenging (IC) is explained by the therapist or patient effects, if baseline patients' characteristics predict IC, and if IC is related to outcome. METHOD: Eighty patients diagnosed with GAD and treated by 20 therapists with 16 sessions of CBT were randomized to two different implementation conditions. Patients completed baseline measures of depression, anxiety, interpersonal problems, and interpersonal strengths. The therapists completed a single-item assessing IC session-by-session. As an outcome, patients completed a worry measure at baseline, session 5, session 10, and posttreatment. RESULTS: Multilevel models showed meaningful therapist effects, explaining 18% of IC variance. Interpersonal strengths were the only baseline predictor significantly and negatively associated with IC during treatment. Structural equation models showed significant negative IC effects on subsequent patient worry during therapy. CONCLUSIONS: IC might represent a risk factor for psychotherapy outcome. Patient interpersonal strengths at baseline may buffer therapists perceiving their patients as ICs. The therapist effects on IC suggest that CBT clinicians treating GAD might benefit from identifying cases that are interpersonally challenging for them and reflecting about what might trigger that perception.

For whom should psychotherapy focus on problem coping? A machine learning algorithm for treatment personalization.

OBJECTIVE: We aimed to develop and test an algorithm for individual patient predictions of problem coping experiences (PCE) (i.e., patients' understanding and ability to deal with their problems) effects in cognitive-behavioral therapy. Method: In an outpatient sample with a variety of diagnoses (n=1010), we conducted Dynamic Structural Equation Modelling to estimate within-patient cross-lagged PCE effects on outcome during the first ten sessions. In a randomly selected training sample (2/3 of the cases), we tried different machine learning algorithms (i.e., ridge regression, LASSO, elastic net, and random forest) to predict PCE effects (i.e., the degree to which PCE was a time-lagged predictor of symptoms), using baseline demographic, diagnostic, and clinically-relevant patient features. Then, we validated the best algorithm on a test sample (1/3 of the cases). RESULTS: The random forest algorithm performed best, explaining 14.7% of PCE effects variance in the training set. The results remained stable in the test set, explaining 15.4% of PCE effects variance. CONCLUSIONS: The results show the suitability to perform individual predictions of process effects, based on patients' initial information. If the results are replicated, the algorithm might have the potential to be implemented in clinical practice by integrating it into monitoring and therapist feedback systems.

Addressing interpersonal patterns in patients with personality disorders partially explains psychotherapy outcome via changes in interaction patterns: A mediation analysis.

Objective Many patients with personality disorders (PDs) present with problematic interaction patterns. These may also manifest in the therapeutic relationship. For successful treatment, therapists must therefore find effective ways to address such problematic interaction patterns. Methods: A total of 382 patients with PDs were recruited within a naturalistic setting and received integrative cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). Two subscales of the observer-rated Process-Content-Relationship Scale were applied to sessions 15, 20, and 25 of treatment: one on patient interaction patterns and the other on therapist addressing these. Symptom severity was assessed at intake and discharge. Mediation analysis was applied. Results: We found significant main effects of (1) therapists' addressing problematic interaction patterns in session 15 on patients' changes in such patterns from session 15 to 25 and (2) patients' changes in problematic interaction patterns on symptom severity at treatment termination. Further, the effect of therapists' addressing problematic interaction patterns on outcome was mediated by changes in patients' interaction patterns. Conclusion: The results indicate that therapists' addressing of PD patients' problematic interaction patterns may be particularly important to improve such patterns and thereby treatment outcome. Future research should identify in which patients the mechanism of addressing interaction patterns works best.

Effects of patient-therapist interpersonal complementarity on alliance and outcome in cognitive-behavioral therapies for depression: Moving toward interpersonal responsiveness.

This study analyzed patient-therapist in-session interpersonal complementarity effects on the therapeutic alliance and depression severity during the initial and working phase of cognitive-behavioral therapy for depression. It also explored whether patients' interpersonal problems moderate those complementarity effects. We drew on a sample of 90 dyads derived from a randomized controlled trial of two cognitive-behavioral therapies for depression. Using an observer-based measure, we assessed patients' and therapists' interpersonal behavior in Sessions 1, 5, 9, and 13 and computed their complementarity regarding interpersonal affiliation (i.e., correspondence) and dominance (i.e., reciprocity). Patients completed measures of interpersonal problems at baseline and session-by-session measures of depression severity and quality of the therapeutic alliance. Response surface analyses based on polynomial regressions showed that patient-therapist complementarity in higher affiliative behaviors was associated with a stronger alliance. Interpersonal problems regarding agency moderated the complementarity effects of the dominance dimensions on depression severity. Overly dominant patients benefited more from a nonreciprocal relationship in the dominance dimension, whereas submissive patients benefited more from complementarity in that dimension. Furthermore, interpersonal problems of communion significantly moderated the effects of complementarity in affiliative behaviors on both the alliance and outcome. These results suggest the relevance of both interpersonal correspondence and reciprocity for the psychotherapy process, informing clinical practice in terms of interpersonal responsiveness. The moderation effects of interpersonal problems provide preliminary evidence, which should be replicated in future research, to determine relevant markers indicating for whom a complementary approach would be beneficial in cognitive therapy for depression. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

The influence of extra-therapeutic social support on the association between therapeutic bond and treatment outcome.

Objective: Both good therapeutic bond as well as extra-therapeutic social support seem to enhance treatment outcomes. Some features of the therapeutic bond are similar to experiences in extra-therapeutic relationships (e.g., feelings of trust or belongingness). Patients with a lack of social support might benefit particularly from a good therapeutic bond, because a well-formed bond can partly substitute relationship needs. This study replicates former research (main effects of bond and social support) and investigates the hypothesized interaction between both constructs. Method: Data from 1206 adult patients receiving cognitive-behavioral outpatient therapy were analyzed. Patients rated early therapeutic bond, their impairment, as well as their social support. Multilevel regression analyses were applied to test for main effects and interactions between bond and social support predicting therapy outcome post treatment. Results: Consistent with prior research, both therapeutic bond and social support predicted therapy outcome. Among patients with high social support, the impact of the therapeutic bond was minimal, while patients with low social support benefited most from a good therapeutic bond. Conclusions: Results suggest that both the therapeutic bond and social support play a role in therapy outcomes and that good therapeutic bond quality might be especially important if a patient lacks social support.

The Association of Therapeutic Alliance With Long-Term Outcome in a Guided Internet Intervention for Depression: Secondary Analysis From a Randomized Control Trial.

BACKGROUND: Therapeutic alliance has been well established as a robust predictor of face-to-face psychotherapy outcomes. Although initial evidence positioned alliance as a relevant predictor of internet intervention success, some conceptual and methodological concerns were raised regarding the methods and instruments used to measure the alliance in internet interventions and its association with outcomes. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to explore the alliance-outcome association in a guided internet intervention using a measure of alliance especially developed for and adapted to guided internet interventions, showing evidence of good psychometric properties. METHODS: A sample of 223 adult participants with moderate depression received an internet intervention (ie, Deprexis) and email support. They completed the Working Alliance Inventory for Guided Internet Intervention (WAI-I) and a measure of treatment satisfaction at treatment termination and measures of depression severity and well-being at termination and 3- and 9-month follow-ups. For data analysis, we used two-level hierarchical linear modeling that included two subscales of the WAI-I (ie, tasks and goals agreement with the program and bond with the supporting therapist) as predictors of the estimated values of the outcome variables at the end of follow-up and their rate of change during the follow-up period. The same models were also used controlling for the effect of patient satisfaction with treatment. RESULTS: We found significant effects of the tasks and goals subscale of the WAI-I on the estimated values of residual depressive symptoms (γ02=-1.74, standard error [SE]=0.40, 95% CI -2.52 to -0.96, t206=-4.37, P<.001) and patient well-being (γ02=3.10, SE=1.14, 95% CI 0.87-5.33, t198=2.72, P=.007) at the end of follow-up. A greater score in this subscale was related to lower levels of residual depressive symptoms and a higher level of well-being. However, there were no significant effects of the tasks and goals subscale on the rate of change in these variables during follow-up (depressive symptoms, P=.48; patient well-being, P=.26). The effects of the bond subscale were also nonsignificant when predicting the estimated values of depressive symptoms and well-being at the end of follow-up and the rate of change during that period (depressive symptoms, P=.08; patient well-being, P=.68). CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study point out the importance of attuning internet interventions to patients' expectations and preferences in order to enhance their agreement with the tasks and goals of the treatment. Thus, the results support the notion that responsiveness to a patient's individual needs is crucial also in internet interventions. Nevertheless, these findings need to be replicated to establish if they can be generalized to different diagnostic groups, internet interventions, and supporting formats.

The Working Alliance Inventory for guided Internet interventions (WAI-I).

OBJECTIVE: This study analyses the psychometric properties of the Working Alliance Inventory adapted for guided Internet interventions (WAI-I). METHODS: We drew on the data set from a multicenter trial that examined a guided Internet intervention (deprexis) for patients with mild to moderate depression. Two hundred twenty-three patients completed the WAI-I and the Patient Satisfaction Questionnaire (ZUF-8) at posttreatment, and the Attitudes toward Psychological Online-Interventions Questionnaire (APOI) at baseline. We ran confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) testing two- and three-factor solutions and calculated Cronbach's α, item-total correlations, and correlations of the WAI-I with APOI and ZUF-8. RESULTS: The results suggested a two-factor solution, with a very good model fit and evidence of factor independency, adequate internal consistency, and external validity for the complete scale and the sub-scales. CONCLUSIONS: The WAI-I showed as a reliable and valid instrument to capture alliance in guided Internet interventions, which might facilitate process-outcome research and treatment development efforts.

Disentangling within- and between-patient effects of defensive functioning on psychotherapy outcome using mixed models.

Abstract There is a great need to identify predictors of treatment response, and the analysis of defense mechanisms is a promising approach. Defensive functioning may influence psychotherapy outcome in two ways: First, when it is generally higher or lower for some patients relative to others and second, as it shifts in individual patients over time. The present study examined both within- and between patient effects of defenses using hierarchical linear modeling. Forty-seven patients diagnosed with depression, anxiety, or adjustment disorders received 25 ± 3 sessions of integrative cognitive-behavioral therapy in a university outpatient clinic. The Defense Mechanism Rating Scale (DMRS) was used to assess defenses in the 1st, 8th, 16th, and 24th session and relate them to symptom severity of depression and anxiety. A higher number of adaptive defense mechanisms was associated with less severe depressive symptoms during treatment while a higher number of immature defenses was related to more severe depressive and anxiety symptoms. An increase in adaptive and a decrease in immature defenses over the course of treatment predicted symptom reduction of depression whereas a decrease in neurotic and immature defenses was associated with reductions in anxiety symptoms. Our results empirically support defensive functioning as a mechanism of change in psychotherapy.

Patient baseline interpersonal problems as moderators of outcome in two psychotherapies for bulimia nervosa.

Objective: We tested an aptitude by treatment interaction; namely, whether patients' baseline interpersonal problems moderated the comparative efficacy of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) vs. interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT) for bulimia nervosa (BN). Method: Data derived from a randomized-controlled trial. Patients reported on their interpersonal problems at baseline; purge frequency at baseline, midtreatment, and posttreatment; and global eating disorder severity at baseline and posttreatment. We estimated the rate of change in purge frequency across therapy, and the likelihood of attaining clinically meaningful improvement (recovery) in global eating disorder severity by posttreatment. We then tested the interpersonal problem by treatment interactions as predictors of both outcomes. Results: Patients with more baseline overly communal/friendly problems showed steeper reduction in likelihood of purging when treated with CBT vs. IPT. Patients with more problems of being under communal/cold had similar reductions in likelihood of purging across both treatments. Patients with more baseline problems of being overly agentic were more likely to recover when treated with IPT vs. CBT, whereas patients with more problems of being under agentic were more likely to recover when treated with CBT vs. IPT. Conclusions: Interpersonal problems related to communion and agency may inform treatment fit among two empirically supported therapies for BN.

A therapist version of the Alliance Negotiation Scale.

The aim of the current study was to design and evaluate a therapist version of the Alliance Negotiation Scale (ANS). The ANS was created in order to operationalize the construct of dyadic negotiation in psychotherapy and to augment existing conceptualizations of the working alliance. The ANS has existed only as a client self-report form since its inception and has demonstrated promise as a psychotherapy process measure. This research intended to develop a complementary therapist self-report version of the measure. The scale creation process is discussed in detail, and the results of a preliminary psychometric investigation are reported. The ANS-Therapist version (ANS-T) was developed using a sample of therapists (n = 114) through a principal components analysis procedure. The ANS-T contains 9 unidimensional items and was moderately correlated with therapist-reported working alliance (r = .468). The results of the study support the composition of the ANS-T and provide initial support for the reliability and validity of the measure.

A time-series analysis of therapeutic alliance, interventions, and client's clinical status in an evidence-based single-case study: Evidence for establishing change mechanisms in psychotherapy.

OBJECTIVE: The goal of this study was to analyze the time-series of alliance, interventions, and client's post-sessions clinical status, to establish if alliance and adherence to cognitive-behavioral interventions preceded improvement in psychotherapy Method: A single-case study of a complete Cognitive-Behavioral treatment of a 27-year-old male diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder treatment was conducted. Alliance, adherence to cognitive-behavioral interventions, and client's therapeutic condition were assessed every two sessions during the entire treatment. RESULTS: After controlling for the effect of autocorrelations, the transfer functions showed that alliance predicted client's clinical condition with a lag of two sessions throughout the entire treatment. However, the inverse relationship was not observed. CONCLUSIONS: Results support the hypothesis of a time-lagged association between alliance and subsequent client's changes in their clinical condition in single case of a cognitive-behavioral treatment.

[RELATIONSHIPS AMONG DRUG ABUSE PATIENTS' CHARACTERISTICS AND WITH THEIR TREATMENT SATISFACTION]. / Relación de las características de pacientes con trastornos por abuso de sustancias con sus niveles de satisfacción por el tratamiento.

In the last years, studies of patients' satisfaction in drug abuse treatments have become a valuable tool for assessing the quality of treatment and predicting their outcome. However, no previous research has been found that examine patients' conditions that could predict satisfaction. This study analyzes the relationship between patients' characteristics and their degrees of satisfaction in treatment using a probabilistic sample of 216 patients from institutions specializing in addictions within the metropolitan area of Buenos Aires. Participants complete a questionnaire about their satisfaction with different elements of the treatment. Statistical analysis shows that some patients' variables are associated with different levels of satisfaction. Belonging to the male gender, having a significant other, and having lower levels of education were significantly linked with greater satisfaction. Fewer amounts of substances consumed as well as fewer substances that motivated the reason for consultation were associated with a higher degree of satisfaction. The results show the importance of assessing these existing features when designing treatments to suit the specific needs of patients; to seek higher levels of satisfaction, and ultimately, better overall results.