The use of reception checks in client pretherapy orientation research

Inmate attitudes toward treatment: mental health service utilization and treatment effects

This study examined inmate attitudes toward treatment, mental health treatment utilization, and treatment effects that maximize treatment effectiveness. Participants consisted of 278 incarcerated male adult offenders from the Kansas Department of Corrections. Multiple linear regression analysis indicated that inmate attitudes toward treatment were predictive of the number of mental health treatment sessions (dosage) inmates received. Hierarchical linear regression analyses indicated positive help-seeking attitudes were associated with institutional behavior (decreased number and severity of disciplinary infractions) and scores on a measure assessing risk for future criminal behavior; however, the amount of mental health treatment an inmate received (treatment dosage) was associated with problematic institutional behavior (i.e., increased severity and number of disciplinary infractions). These results indicated that treatment dosage and behavioral outcomes were impacted by inmate attitudes toward treatment. As a result, correctional psychologists may be better able to predict which inmates will receive the most benefit from services. Implications of these findings for practitioners and policy makers are discussed.

What do patients expect of psychiatric services? A systematic and critical review of empirical studies

The article reviews literature concerning patients' expectations of psychiatric care. Early research (pre-1980) is outlined, followed by a systematic review of 21 studies fulfilling specific inclusion criteria from 1980 onwards. Overall, patients expected to improve as a result of psychiatric treatment, and had higher expectations of the helpfulness of psychological and combined treatments than other interventions. Few studies considered expectations of the process of psychiatric care or determinants of expectations. The majority of studies focused on examining the relation between expectations and outcomes. There were indications that expectations of improvement were linked to clinical outcomes, although the relationship appeared to be complex. There was also some evidence that when expectations of the process of care were incongruent with the service provided, outcomes were poorer. The findings of studies in the systematic review were generally congruent with earlier work (pre-1980), although expectations of improvement appeared to be higher in the later studies. Interventions to prepare patients for what to expect were found to have beneficial effects on attendance, satisfaction and the accuracy of expectations about the process of psychiatric care. Future research should focus on developing valid and reliable measures for use in different settings, and on determining the mechanism by which expectations may relate to outcomes, including clinical outcomes, attendance and satisfaction.

Psychological, demographic and situational factors of family physicians which influence cigarette cessation interventions in office-based practice

Sixty-five office-based family physicians completed a mailed questionnaire which sought to determine the extent to which these physicians offer cigarette cessation interventions to their patients. This information was related to 44 scales from 7 psychological tests completed by each physician during residency training. Ninety percent of these physicians intervene personally, while outside referral to an expert and internal referral to a nurse were each utilized by less than 12% of the sample. Over 45% of these private practitioners used supplemental video or written materials. A number of psychological characteristics but no demographic or situational variables discriminated physicians regarding the implementation of these cigarette cessation interventions.

Pretreatment expectations of New Zealand clients receiving cognitive-behavioural psychotherapy: comparison with a North American sample

A study of New Zealand clients' expectations of psychotherapy was conducted using the Psychotherapy Questionnaire (PQ). The PQ was administered to 141 New Zealand clients attending their first appointment with a clinical psychologist. The New Zealand clients' expectations were compared to previous research using a sample of USA clients who also completed the PQ prior to their first visit with a therapist. Those differences between the NZ and USA samples were consistent with previous research comparing the expectations of non-American samples. In general the NZ sample expected to be more passive in therapy than the USA sample and did not expect to have to discuss difficult or uncomfortable topics. Despite these differences there were suggestions that NZ and USA clients may have more similarities than differences with regard to their expectations about psychotherapy.

Television as a patient education tool: a review of its effectiveness

Thirty-three studies of the use of television as a patient-education process are reviewed. While there are many different conditions addressed by the studies and many studies have methodological problems there are consistencies in the results that suggest how this medium has a role to play. Eleven studies randomized subjects and had a control group. All but one reported achieving their objective of knowledge gain, skill training, or behavior change. Video presentation alone was as effective as any other presentation method and was more effective than only written information. Recommendations for the use of television for patient education are included.