Does the therapist matter? Therapist characteristics and their relation to outcome in trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy for children and adolescents

Autor: Elisa Pfeiffer, Silje Mørup Ormhaug, Dunja Tutus, Tonje Holt, Rita Rosner, Tore Wentzel Larsen, Tine K. Jensen
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2020
Předmět:
Zdroj: European Journal of Psychotraumatology, Vol 11, Iss 1 (2020)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 2000-8066
20008198
DOI: 10.1080/20008198.2020.1776048
Popis: Background There is a broad evidence-base for the effectiveness of Trauma-Focused Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) in treating children and adolescents with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The effect of therapist characteristics on patient symptoms has been neglected in psychotraumatology research and necessitates further investigation. Objective This study aims to investigate the impact of therapist characteristics (gender, clinical experience and theoretical background) on posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) in a heterogeneous and international sample of traumatized children and adolescents. Method Data from two RCTs on the effectiveness of TF-CBT in Norway and Germany were included, comprising N = 52 therapists (78.8% female) and N = 153 patients (72.3% female). All therapists underwent thorough training and continuous supervision in TF-CBT. The Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale for Children and Adolescents (CAPS-CA) assessed pre- and post-treatment served as the outcome variable in a linear mixed-effects model with therapists’ theoretical background, prior clinical experience and gender as independent variables, adjusted for patient gender, measurement time and country. The possibility of an interaction between therapist and patient gender was investigated subsequently. Results None of the therapist characteristics were significantly related to PTSS. There was no indication of an interaction between patient and therapist gender (p =.878). Conclusion The lack of evidence for a relationship of therapists’ theoretical orientation and clinical experience with outcome suggests that a wider dissemination of TF-CBT may be warranted. More studies with larger therapist and patient sample sizes and including only community practice are needed.
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