Studied 30 outpatient psychotherapy clients and assessed their relative change of status at termination and six months posttreatment. The vast majority of clients indicated improvement. Socioeconomic status, age, total psychotherapy sessions, initial neuroticism, and initial extraversion were identified as predictors of positive change in status.…

Discusses use of reward and punishment as reinforcers, then considers when reward-punishment model does not seem to elicit predictable results. Discusses need to go beyond simple explanation of reward and punishment and to consider other, more subtle forms of motivation. Specifically addresses issues of identity and conformity. (NB)

Examined the relationship between client adjustment and expectations regarding the outcome of therapy, and the nature of the relationship between expectancy and outcome in clients (N=110) at a university counseling center. Results showed no relationship between adjustment and expectancy but found a significant relationship between expectancy and…

Developed and tested the Psychotherapy Questionnaire to determine whether clients (N=62) had attended to and understood a pretherapy videotape presentation and whether they recalled the information one month later. Results indicated that the clients were able to understand the presentation. (LLL)

Tests the relationship between the success of psychotherapeutic efforts and the client's expectation-reality discrepancy, i.e., as the number of disconfirmed expectations increases the possibility for successful psychotherapy (positive therapy outcomes and low drop out rates) decreases. (Author/RK)

Investigated historical trends in the assertion training literature by content analyzing documents published between 1942 and 1977. Revealed that although the assertion training literature has shown a very rapid acceleration of growth, empirical documentation of the effects of important parameters of training and treatment is lacking. (Author)

Developed and tested the Shoplifter Offenders Program (SOP) which uses the principles of Ellis' rational-emotive therapy (RET) as the conceptual foundation for the intensive, 8-hour, psychoeducational group counseling experience with adult first offender shoplifters (N=94). Results showed a recidivism rate of approximately one percent. (LLL)

In a survey, psychotherapy and clinical fellows indicated that there was little agreement among them with regard to which books are helpful in training clinicians. A minority responded that no books were helpful. Books found most helpful (N=15) are referenced. (Author)

Presents a relatively new theoretical, clinical, and research approach to dreams. Describes the functional theory of dreams and contrasts the functional approach with the more familiar interpretive approach. Reviews the origins and later spin-offs of the interpretive approach. (Author)

Long-term clients were not found to differ from short-term clients in the types of problems they presented with, in the diagnoses they received, or on the major demographic variables. The differences seemed to be more of degree than of kind. (Author)

Allowed undergraduate students (N=70) to interact for 44 minutes with ELIZA, a computer simulation of psychotherapy, and compared their responses during the first and second halves of the session. Results showed a significant increase in responses in roughly half of the categories. (LLL)