PSYCO105 Lecture Notes - Lecture 28: Meta-Analysis
1 May 2018
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Evaluating Therapy
1. Specificity of The Questions
a. Which types of therapy?
b. What kinds of therapists?
c. What kinds of clients?
d. Which kinds of problems
e. Which kinds of effects were observed?
2. Some Problems;
a. Many variables not controlled
b. Therapist-Client interactions varied
c. Measuring therapeutic effects
d. Problem with standardization → how do we measure and standardize the outcomes.
i. Finding the right measurements is the most difficult in clinical psychology.
Randomized Clinical Trials → Random assignment of clients to experimental or control groups to find
effectiveness.
Types of Control Groups
1. No Treatment
2. Placebo control condition → inert pills or irrelevant intervention.
3. Other effective treatment conditions → drugs that work or other therapy.
Meta-Analysis
❏Researchers combine statistical results from many studies to reach overall conclusion.
❏Researchers see if the effect is shown across various studies.
Dodo Bird Verdict
❏All therapies are good. → percentage who improved more than average control patients were
very efficient.
❏Similar efficiency found for differing therapies → but perhaps more effective for certain things?
❏Although various patients have different therapy techniques that are more effective for
them all of them are very effective in a general prospect.
❏Difficult to examine significant effect based on one therapy, therefore meta-analysis of all
five studies to show the effectiveness.
Clinical Significance
❏Sometimes focus on whether or not they achieved the full intended effect.
❏From the depressed score → to the normal range.
❏Clinical Significant looks at the individual patients and how they transition over therapy.
For example someone with a high depression range moving to a normal score would
have high clinical significance.
Factors that affect Therapy Outcomes
1. Therapist variables → empathy, genuineness, experience
2. Client variables → Nature of problem, client motivation
3. Techniques → Timing of interpretations, specific techniques.
The Cognitive Triangle
❏Thoughts to Behaviour to Emotions back to Thoughts.
Client variables:
1. Openness → Willingness to invest self in therapy → Take risks
2. Self-Relatedness → Ability to experience and understand internal states, be attuned to processes
in relationship with therapist, and apply what is learned in therapy to their lives.
3. Nature of Problem → Needs to fit with therapy being used.
Document Summary
Finding the right measurements is the most difficult in clinical psychology. Randomized clinical trials random assignment of clients to experimental or control groups to find effectiveness. Types of control groups: no treatment, placebo control condition inert pills or irrelevant intervention, other effective treatment conditions drugs that work or other therapy. Researchers combine statistical results from many studies to reach overall conclusion. Researchers see if the effect is shown across various studies. Percentage who improved more than average control patients were. Although various patients have different therapy techniques that are more effective for them all of them are very effective in a general prospect. Difficult to examine significant effect based on one therapy, therefore meta-analysis of all five studies to show the effectiveness. Sometimes focus on whether or not they achieved the full intended effect. From the depressed score to the normal range. Clinical significant looks at the individual patients and how they transition over therapy.
