The first months of psychotherapy are the most effective in the treatment of young people
Psychotherapeutic interventions are effective in the treatment of young people suffering from mental health problems. They reduce young people’s psychological symptoms and improve their functioning. The biggest change occurs during the first six months of treatment. The more often the patient and Therapist meet, the more likely an improvement in the young person’s psychological well-being and functioning will be noticed. This is demonstrated by the doctoral dissertation in the field of psychology of psychology graduate Vera Gergov.
Psychotherapeutic interventions mean, in addition to psychotherapy, forms of therapy that contain functional elements, such as music, art and horse-riding therapy, as well as psychiatric occupational therapy.
In his dissertation, Gergov evaluates the psychological symptoms and functional capacity of 13–15-year-old patients with various self-assessments before starting treatment. A total of 58 young people participated in the study. The assessments were repeated three, six and 12 months after the start of treatment. The young people also completed self-assessments regarding their own expectations and the therapeutic alliance. The therapists also evaluated the alliance.
Externalizing symptoms and treatment expectations predicted early termination of treatment
According to the dissertation, the prognosis for the intervention was good if the young person felt that their relationship with the therapist was working well.
Gergov also investigated which factors contributed to premature discontinuation of treatment. Young people with behavior problems or hyperactivity and attentional challenges and low expectations of their own active role in the intervention were at the highest risk of dropping out. The risk of premature termination was also high for those young people who felt that the therapeutic alliance was weak or weakened during treatment.
According to Gergov, it is important that therapists are aware of possible behavioral symptoms of young people and their expectations for treatment.
“Therapy should focus on strengthening the active role of young people during therapy. This increases their commitment to psychotherapy and helps them benefit from it.
Efficiency measure in the treatment of young people
As part of his dissertation, Gergov translated the YP-CORE treatment outcome measure aimed at young people from English into Finnish and studied the feasibility of the measure in a dataset of 104 young people. The measure proved to be suitable for evaluating the effectiveness of psychotherapeutic interventions for young people.
“In Finland, there is a need for assessment methods developed especially for young people, because currently measures aimed at adults are usually used in the assessment of treatment. They don’t necessarily suit young people so well,” says Gergov.
According to Gergov, the effectiveness of psychotherapeutic interventions for young people should be studied regularly to increase knowledge of the subject. Predictors related to the effectiveness of treatment should also be studied in more detail in order to make more individualized treatment recommendations.
“Future studies should take into account young people’s experiences of treatment and its benefits. In order to make the treatment more effective, it is also important to consider the reasons for premature termination of the treatment.
Public exam
Bachelor of Psychology Vera Gergov will defend her dissertation “Psychotherapeutic interventions for young people suffering from mental health disorders: effectiveness and predictors of treatment outcome” on Friday 2 December 2022 at 13:00 at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Helsinki. The public exam will be held at the Keskusta campus (Psychologicum building hall 132, Siltavuorenpenger 1). Henrik Enckell is the opponent and Jari Lahti is the custos.
The dissertation is already available online in the Helda archive.